Synoptics Develops New Instrument for IDEXX Laboratories

To Make Performing Total Viable Counts with Quanti-Disc™ Quicker and Easier

Cambridge, UK: Synoptics, a world leader in the development and manufacture of innovative digital imaging systems for life science applications, is pleased to announce it has developed the Quanti-Disc™ reader, a new automated fluorescence plate reading system, designed to help rapidly assess water quality, for major microbiological testing company, IDEXX Laboratories.

Synoptics has built on its expertise of developing industry leading Synbiosis automated colony counters to produce the Quanti-Disc reader, which will be marketed exclusively by IDEXX Laboratories. The reader automatically detects and reads fluorescence from the 50 wells of a Quanti-Disc in less than 10 seconds, making performing total viable counts with Quanti-Disc even quicker and simpler than traditional agar plating methods.

Adam Potter, Associate Product Manager at IDEXX Laboratories stated: “Since we launched Quanti-Disc last year, customers have said they would like to automate reading the fluorescence in each well. Synoptics is known as a leader in the industry with the Synbiosis colony counters, which is why we approached Synoptics to be our partner in this exciting project.”

“The Quanti-Disc Reader can accurately and objectively read 100 Quanti-Disc plates in just 15 minutes. This is less than half the time it takes most microbiologists to read the plates manually, and will be an excellent time saving addition for Quanti-Disc users,” Potter continued.

Phil Atkin, Managing Director of Synoptics said: “At Synoptics we have over 20 years' experience in producing high quality imaging solutions. We were delighted when we were approached because we enjoy the challenge of developing innovative life science imagers around the specific requirements of industry-leading customers such as IDEXX Laboratories. The resulting Quanti-Disc reader is a system we are very proud of and will, we believe, improve the utility of what was already an innovative, time saving product.”

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Note to Editors

About Syngene

Syngene is a world-leading supplier of integrated imaging solutions for analysis and documentation of gel-based information. Syngene’s systems are used by more than 10,000 research organisations and over 50,000 individual scientists world-wide and include many of the world’s top pharmaceutical companies and major research institutes.

Syngene, founded in 1997 is a division of the Synoptics Group based in Cambridge, UK. The Group’s other divisions, Syncroscopy and Synbiosis, specialise in digital imaging solutions for microscopy and microbial applications respectively. Synoptics currently employs 60 people in its UK and subsidiary operation in Frederick, USA.

The Department of Microbiology at the University of Massachusetts is based in Amherst, MA and offers undergraduates both a major and minor in microbiology and programs of graduate study leading to masters and Ph.D. degrees in microbiology. The Department consists of nine research groups specialising in areas of microbial research including microbial genetics, physiology and pathogenesis, as well as plant and environmental microbiology.