Jun 28 2013
Finesse Solutions, Inc, Santa Clara, CA, a manufacturer of measurement and control solutions for life sciences process applications, announced the launch of its new SmartRocker™ and SmartBag™ products for upstream cell culture. A SmartBag can either be retrofitted on the most commonly utilized rocker platform trays or used with a SmartRocker.
Designed for R&D and cGMP scale-up, the SmartRocker allows the user to configure the rocking motion from a smooth waveform that minimizes shear force for sensitive cell lines to an aggressive motion that maximizes oxygen transfer for robust cells having high oxygen consumption. Each Smartbag bio-process container holds an embedded SensorPuck™ comprising three sensors (pH, dissolved oxygen {DO), and temperature) that monitor the cell growth process for up to 21 days.
The SensorPuck leverages the technology behind TruFluor pH and DO in a compact assembly that is pre-calibrated using a SmartChip™ and provides accurate, drift-free, in-situ measurements. The combined pH and DO optical SmartReader™ uses advanced optical components including large area photodiode that minimize photo-degradation of the active pH and DO sensing elements. The SensorPuck also leverages the TruFluor® temperature 316L stainless steel thermal window for highly stable readings. The SensorPuck is welded into the single-use SmartBag and eliminates the need for sterile connectors and their associated complications such as leakage and batch contamination. All wetted materials of the SensorPuck are USP class VI compliant and being identical to TruFluor, allow direct measurement comparisons and scale-up from 10L rocker bags to 2,000L stirred-tank single-use bioreactors.
A SmartRocker is controlled by either a G3Lab (R&D/PD) or a G3Pro (cGMP) Finesse control system and TruBio® software. The closed loop feedback control allows the cell growth process to be optimized for cell density, viability, and productivity. These turn-key rocker packages provide a complete solution for seed train of small scale production applications.
According to Finesse Solutions VP of R&D, Dr. Mark Selker, “Finesse’s goals are to enable our customers to manufacture innovative drugs and vaccines both quickly and efficiently. The SmartRocker and SmartBag products are optimized for accuracy, lifetime, affordability, and ease of use. We expect our “Smart” solution to reignite interest in rocker and shaker applications by enabling the bio-process to achieve higher cell densities and therefore redefining the role of these platforms in a process train.”