LabAutomation 2006 - SLAS

MP77
Michael Thomas
Royal Free Hampstead Nhs Trust
London, United Kingdom
michael.thomas@royalfree.nhs.uk
Where Laboratory Technologies Emerge and Merge
Co-Author
Keyna Mendonca
An Exemplar of Laboratory Automation: Proving the Modular Concept in a Modernising
Pathology Service
In spring 2001 the Royal Free Hospital became the first total laboratory automation (TLA) site in the United Kingdom with the
implementation of the Roche-Hitachi Modular series of instruments. The site has been widely recognized in the UK as an exemplar of
pathology modernization where pre-analytical robots linked to parallel processing lines for classical chemistry and immunodiagnostics
provides a seamless process from sample registration to result production. Since then increasing demand has seen the number of
delivered specimens increase from 900 to 1,700 per day. Under a modernizing agenda for pathology services this workload is expected
to increase by a further 25% this year with the relocation of local sector based renal services.
The benefits of the modular approach to automation means that the Royal Free has been able to easily increase the capacity of its TLA
set-up through the introduction of a third analytical line for classical chemistry and an additional module for immunodiagnostics. Computer
modeling predicts that reconfiguration will also provide an enhanced service with a reduction in turnaround times from 35 minutes to
22 minutes (time of loading to result). Furthermore, the additional capacity in immunodiagnostics will promote further test consolidation
across pathology. The initial aims of introducing TLA, reported at this conference in 2001, have been more than met with demonstrable
improvements in both quality and productivity contained within cash limits. The ease of expansion of the system through its modular
configuration vindicates its original selection and secures an appropriate return on investment in this technology.
MP78
Kerstin Thurow
University Rostock
Rostock, Germany
kerstin.thurow@uni-rostock.de
Co-Author
Dirk Gördes
Center for Life Science Automation
HTS Application for the Determination of Enantiomeric Excess Using ESI-Mass
Spectrometry
The outstanding properties of chemical substances for pharmaceutical applications and designed molecules are often based upon their
enantiopure occurrence. Methods for a rapid determination of the enantiomeric excess (ee) of organic substrates, especially for highthroughput
screenings, are often the “bottleneck” in a purposed process. A combined process of entirely automated sample preparation
and mass spectrometry was developed and resulted in a powerful tool with a broad scope of applications. In general, mass spectrometry
is a technique that provides no chiral information but is attractive to high-throughput applications because of its wide scope. The fact that
mass spectrometry enables the detection and specification of masses of desired targets in a parallel manner without interference, creates
the basis for a fast determination of enantiomeric excess via kinetic resolution with mass-tagged auxiliaries. First, the kinetic resolution
selectivity, defined as the relative rates of the competing fast and slow reactions of mass-tagged enantiopure R- and S-auxiliaries with the
substrate, is recorded in a defined calibration procedure. With this calibration a measurement of an authentic sample derivatized with the
auxiliaries will give the relative amounts of the desired substrate. For this method, a large variety of chiral acids, alcohols, amides, amines
and amino acids were applicable and could be utilized as substrate or auxiliary. In combination with standardized reaction vessels and
a very versatile and precise sample preparation system, the average measurement duration can be shortened by a factor of 5 to 10. An
efficient automatic data processing completes the HTS requirements.
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