Library Copier™

  Copy Cultures, Genomic DNA or cDNA Libraries in Either 96 or 384 Well Formats:
 

• Cosmids
• Mutants
• Recombinant Clones
• Hybridomas
• Plasmids
• YACs

The LIBRARY COPIER™ is a simple registration accessory that precisely aligns the pins in our 48, 96, 384 or 1536 pin MULTI-BLOT™ Replicators to the center of the wells in source and recipient 48, 96, 384 or 1536 well plates. One frame of the LIBRARY COPIER™ has two sets of four alignment holes and the other frame has two sets of one alignment hole. The two guide pins on the MULTI-BLOT™ Replicators fit into the single pair alignment holes and registers the pins into the center of the wells. The single hole alignment pair is used on both the source and recipient plates to copy the library. The ease and precision of the alignment ensures a safe plate to plate transfer of cultures or clones, without "touching off" the hanging drop.

Click here for a list of published articles that cite using the products on this page.

The four alignment hole frame of the VP 381 is used with a 96 pin MULTI-BLOT™ Replicator to convert 4 source 96 well plates into one recipient 384 well plate (see diagram on right).  The LIBRARY COPIER™ can also convert one 384 well library to four 96 well libraries by simply reversing the process.  In addition to the advantages of working with high density cultures, condensing and freezing libraries in 384 well plates saves precious freezer space.

The VP 381N can also condense 4 source 384 well microplates into one 1536 well microplate when used with a VP 384FP1, VP 384FP3 or VP 384FP9 Multi-Blot Replicator.  The VP 381N LIBRARY COPIER™ can also convert one 1536 well library to four 384 well libraries by simply reversing the process.

  Construct Library "Block Pools" for Screening

The LIBRARY COPIER™ is also used to make library "block pools" by making multiple inoculations to a single recipient plate from multiple source plates.  Screening "block pools" greatly reduces the number of screening assays and facilitates looking for rare events or cultures.  V&P has also devised a two dimensional block pooling scheme using 96 well source microplates and 384 well recipient microplates that reduces the number of assays performed 6 fold.

  Register Source Microplate for Colony Copier™ and Multi-Print™

Because the LIBRARY COPIER™ registers the MULTI-BLOT™ Replicators to the source plates it is used in all applications: replicating, screening, inoculating, transferring, converting, constructing and storing.

  Deep Well Library Copiers

VP 381A & VP 381B

The VP 381A Deep Well LIBRARY COPIER™ and the VP 381B conventional microplate LIBRARY COPIER™ have larger alignment holes to accommodate the larger diameter guide pins on Deep Well MULTI-BLOT™ Replicators. The VP 381A was designed to fit over Deep 96 and 384 Well Microplates while the VP 381B was designed to fit over conventional microplates and aid in reformatting libraries from deep well microplates to 384 well microplates.
 

VP 381A-1

The VP 381A-1 has alignment holes that accommodate the guide pins from our standard Multi-Blot Replicators so that the standard replicators can be used with deep well microplates.  Although the pins on the standard replicators are shorter and will not reach the bottom of the deep well microplates they still can be used to transfer liquid to or from deep well microplates.  The only difference between the VP 381A-1 and the VP 381A is the size of the alignment holes (larger for the VP 381A to accommodate the larger guide pins of deep well Replicators.

  Midi Deep Well Library Copiers™

VP 381M

A number of microplate manufacturers have made both 96 and 384 "Midi" microplates that stand about 2.5 cm tall.  At this height they can be accessed with our Standard MULTI-BLOT™ Replicators (VP 408, VP 409, VP 384 and VP 386) so we made a taller LIBRARY COPIER™, the VP 381M so the Replicators can be registered to the Midi Microplates.  Note that the alignment holes on the VP 381M are the same diameter as the standard VP 381 so they accept the guide pins on the Standard MULTI-BLOT™ Replicators.
 

  High Throughput Replication/Dilution Library Copier™

VP 381D

The VP 381D High Throughput LIBRARY COPIER™ was designed with just one pair of alignment holes for easy access and removal of microplates.  Instead of placing the LIBRARY COPIER™ over the Microplate like the conventional LIBRARY COPIER™ the Microplate is placed in a registration jig on the High Throughput LIBRARY COPIER™ thus facilitating rapid Microplate handling.  This ease and rapidity of handling lends itself to high throughput replication especially when using 384 well microplates.  When used with our Slot Pin MULTI-BLOT™ Replicators it can also make serial dilutions of new leads.  As many as 10 microplates/minute can be processed using this technique.
 

The High Throughput LIBRARY COPIER™ was designed so the Replicator pins will not touch the bottom or the sides of Microplate wells.  This is an important issue in ELISA assays that use ligands coated to the sides and bottom of the Microplate wells and scraping them off would affect assay precision.  If you are transferring DNA, cDNA or other materials in hydrophobic solutions you will find that using our new V&P Pin Cleaning Solution will greatly increase the precision of delivery.  For an explanation see the FAQ page and the V&P Pin Cleaning Solution page.
 

  Library Copiers™ for Floating Pin Replicators

VP 381D-N

The Floating Tube Style Multi-Blot Replicators have shorter pins (17 mm) than the fixed pin Multi-Blot Replicators or the E-Clip style Multi-Blot Replicators (22 mm) and therefore require Library Copiers with a shorter alignment height.  The       VP 381D-N is the short version of the High Throughput of the VP 381D.  It will accommodate all standard height 96, 384 and 1536 microplates. 

VP 381N

The VP 381N  LIBRARY COPIER™ was designed for the 96, 384 and 1536 pin tube style FP series Floating Pin Mult-Blot Replicators as they have shorter pins they need a shorter LIBRARY COPIER™. 
 

VP 381-24

The VP 381-24 LIBRARY COPIER™ was designed to register a 24 well replicator exactly to the well centers of the Costar 24 well microplate. The VP 381-24 has 2 alignment holes along the front side for the replicator guide pins. It also has a hole on the left rear corner to indicate positioning of the microplate A1 corner.

The photo to the right shows our AFIX24FP1 Replicator used with the VP 381-24 to spot nanoliter amounts of liquid onto the surface of Costar 24 microplate wells. The VP 381-24 can also be used with other 24 well microplates for liquid-to-liquid transfer.

VP 381F

The VP 381F LIBRARY COPIER™ was designed as a High Through Put Copier to accommodate the shorter 12 mm Tube Style series Multi-Blot Replicators.  The VP 381F can be used with all of the FP1, FP3 and FP9 series MULTI-BLOT™ 1536 Replicators as a high throughput LIBRARY COPIER™.  Because of its lower profile only 1536 well microplates are accommodated. 
 

VP 381NA

The VP 381NA was designed to register a VP 838FP1 Multi-Blot Replicator containing 8 rows of 48 FP1 pins to a 1,536 microwell plate.  The VP 381NA has 4 alignment holes on each side.  This combination leaves a blank or control row between each section. 

Although there are standard dimension for microplates we have found that different mold lots of 1536 well microplates often don't meet those standards.  Because there is very little room for error when placing a 1536 pin tool into a 1536 microplate we have placed adjustment screws in the VP 381NA to allow it to be adjusted perfectly to each type of microplate.

VP 381NAB

The VP 381NAB was designed to register a VP 455FP1 or VP 455FP3 Multi-Blot Replicator Strip containing 1 row of 48 FP1 pins to a 1,536 microwell plate.  The VP 381NAB has 36 alignment holes on each side.  This combination allows every row to be sampled or delivered to.  Because of this high density of alignment holes the diameter of the alignment holes had to be reduced and the diameter of the guide pins on the VP 455FP1 was reduced to 1.19 mm.

VP 381G

The VP 381G was designed for registering all FP1, FP3, and FP9 series floating replicators to 1536 well SBS standard microplates (Nunc, Griener Genetix and Corning). 

The photo to the right shows a 1536 pin tool registering to a 1536 well plate.

The photo to the right shows a 384 pin tool registering to a 1536 well plate.

Although there are standard dimension for microplates we have found that different mold lots of 1536 well microplates often don't meet those standards.  Because there is very little room for error when placing a 1536 pin tool into a 1536 microplate we have placed adjustment screws in the VP 381G to allow it to be adjusted perfectly to each type of microplate.

VP 381H

The VP 381H LIBRARY COPIER™ was designed to register 96 Floating Pin Replicators exactly to the well centers of 96 well microplates. The VP 381H is shorter in height, similar to our VP 381N, and also the guide pin holes along the front frame are of minimal diameter to provide precise spotting. It has a set of 4 holes on the rear frame and thus can be used to spot 384 well microplates.

The photo to the right shows our AFIX96FP1 Replicator used with the VP 381H to spot nanoliter amounts of liquid onto the centers of Costar 96 microplates wells. (Note that Liquid to Dry Plate Transfers require additional considerations, as described.)

  Tissue Culture Wounding Experiments

Wounding Dimensions in Microplates

The picture to the right shows the wounding dimensions of VP 381NW and
VP 381NW4.5 with VP 408FH and VP 408FP6.

For more details on wounding Tissue Culture Monolayers please follow this link.

VP 381NW

The VP 381NW LIBRARY COPIER was designed to be used in tissue culture "wounding" experiments where a monolayer of tissue culture cells was grown in a 96 or 384 well microplate and a V&P floating pin replicator was used to create a precise and reproducible wounding pattern in all themono-layers.  We modified a VP 381N into a VP 381NW by making it with 2 oval alignment holes (1.58 mm by 2.58 mm) so the 2 guide pins could be moved in a race track movement and the replicator pins would damage the monolayer in a precise and reproducible manner.  . The scientists could then apply different treatments to each well and gauge how effective they were.    A variety of different pin diameters on our Replicators allows for different patterns of damage.

The photo to the right illustrates an oval alignment hole.

The first scientist to use wounding monolayers with one of our floating pin tools was Justin C. Yarrow at Harvard.  In Dr. Yarrow's experiments he used one of our 384 pin tools and did the wounding "free hand".   The VP 381NW is an improvement over the free hand technique.
 

VP 381NW4.5

The VP 381NW4.5 is the same as the VP 381NW except for having longer ovals (4.5 mm) which allows for longer wounding pattern if desired.
 

VP 381NWGV4.5

The VP 381NWGV4.5 was designed with an adjustable base so that it can be registered precisely and securely to any microplate.  Thus wounds that are made using it are precise in length and width.
 

Because microplate dimensions vary from manufacture to manufacture and between batches we have developed an adjustable registration frame to hold the microplate securely so it can not move during the wounding process.

The photo on the left illustrates how the base can be precisely adjusted to accommodate plates on slightly different dimensions.  A less elegant but practical solution is to apply layers of tape to the inside of a VP 381NW4.5 until you have a snug fit to the microplate.

VP 381NW5

The VP 381NW5 is the same as the VP 381NW and VP 381NW4.5 except for having longer ovals (5 mm) which allows for longer wounding pattern if desired.
 

VP 381NW5-V

The VP 381NW5-V is the same as the VP 381NW5 except for having ovals (5 mm) in a vertical orientation.

VP 381W-24

Another group wanted to see if the number of cells in a monolayer would affect the wound healing so we made another Library copier that would fit over 24 well microplates.  The 24 well microplates are taller than 96 and 384 well plates so they required a custom Library Copier to accommodate them, the VP 381W-24.  The oval pattern dimensions are the same (1.58 mm by 2.58 mm) but in a vertical orientation.

This experiment also required the construction of a new 24 floating pin Replicator with FP6 pins (AFIX24FP6).  Note the black foamed Silicone rubber pad used to keep the pins touching the bottom of the plate (BMPM-PAD-1).
 

VP 381O

VP 381O is simple registration device that allows the researcher to reformat plates from 96 to 384 or the reverse using a 96 Pin Tool on the VP 903B. The reformattor has a SBS footprint on the bottom that fits into a deck station on the VP 903B.  When a 384 well microplate is placed on 1 of the 4 positions of the Reformattor, the 96 pin tool will be aligned to the same relative quadrant of the microplate.  The entire 384 well microplate is addressed when the 384 well microplate is manually moved between the 4 positions

Click here for a list of published articles that cite using the products on this page.