A LEADING medical device company has scooped two prizes at Buckinghamshire County Council’s Enterprise Awards 2010. High Wycombe-based Mediplus won the Bucks Ambassadors Award for Innovative Enterprise and the International Trader Award at the ceremony last month. Commenting on the success, Emma Gray, managing director, said: “This is the first time we have entered these awards, so taking not one, but two home is a great testament to the entire team, our manufacturing partners, clinical colleagues and international distributor network.” Sales and marketing director, James Urie, added: “We work very closely with our clinical colleagues and patient groups, listening to their needs to develop innovative solutions such as the patented Suprapubic Foley Catheter with Introducer Set that facilitates a change in clinical practice to provide a higher quality of care for patients and reduce healthcare expenditure. In turn, our international distribution network in more than 40 countries takes these innovative solutions to a wider patient group worldwide.”

IMPROVED automation is being experienced by staff at the postnatal laboratory at the West of Scotland Regional Cytogenetics Service following the installation of new technology. The service has procured the Varistain Gemini ES banding machine and ClearVue automated coverslipping device from Thermo Fisher Scientific for use in the Department of Cytogenetics. And since installation, the Gemini model has reduced the slide-making and banding workload by nearly 50%. In addition, the ClearVue solution solves workflow hassles, delivering improved speed and precision and ensuring each slide is uniform in both the placement of the coverslip and the depth of the mountant. Prior to the move, the laboratory suffered problems with manual coverslipping and inconsistent speed in the banding process. Jim Colgan, principal scientist at the lab, said: “We selected this instrumentation for its excellent efficiency and capability to meet even the most-demanding applications. Overall, with the new instrumentation our laboratory workflows have been considerably enhanced and throughput of blood samples has been accelerated while ensuring optimum results.” The lab processes approximately 6,500 samples a year.

 

The Eporator from Eppendorf

CAMBRIDGE-based Eppendorf has launched the Eporator, a fast and safe way to transform bacteria, yeast and other micro-organisms with DNA/RNA. Exposing bacteria or yeast strains to short, high-voltage electrical pulses enables macromolecules, such as plasmid DNA, to diffuse into the cell through temporary pores in the cell membrane. Designed to deliver the ideal conditions needed for this to take place, the Eporator has been shown to give transformation efficiencies 10 times higher than with chemical ‘heat shock’ methods and 50% higher than the earlier version, the Electroporator 2510. “The transformation of bacteria in order to amplify recombinant DNA is often carried out using chemical transformation,” said a company spokesman. “Although reliable and cost-effective, this method is very time-consuming and the transformation efficiency can be too low. The new Eporator not only saves valuable time and delivers higher transformation rates, but crucially it is also extremely user-friendly. Two new programme buttons allow storage and recall of the most commonly-used parameters and simple one-button operation ensures intuitive use for faster sample handling.”

 

SCIENTISTS and medical experts who work with animals are continuing to benefit from advances in human medicine, with the London Institute of Zoology buying in a label printer from the Brady Corporation. Skin cells from endangered species are now growing in tissue culture labelled using Brady’s BBP11 printer as part of the Frozen Ark Project, which aims to save DNA and viable cells from thousands of rare and endangered mammals, birds, fish, amphibians and invertebrates. By preserving and properly labelling the samples taken from animals in captive breeding programmes, precious information about a species can be saved for future research. Daphne Green, senior technician at the institute, said of the new machine: “By culturing skin cells we can greatly increase the number available and then divide them into sub-samples ready for freezing in liquid nitrogen. Each tube needs to be labelled with detailed information about the sample and we use the Brady system to be sure our labels remain legible and do not become detached during storage.”

 

Radleys' new PTFE safety covers

A NEW range of energy-efficient PTFE safety covers has been launched by Radleys for its market-leading Heat-on Blocks. Heat-on is the safe, clean and efficient alternative to messy oil baths for heating and stirring round-bottom flasks from 10ml to five litres. The new covers provides an insulated barrier between the user and the ‘hot’ block, reducing the temperature of exposed surfaces by as much as 50% and using 15% less energy to maintain temperatures for extended periods. The chemically-resistant covers also form a barrier between the ‘hot’ surface and any accidentally-spilled solvents or chemicals.

 

CANON has this week announced the development of its first wireless, cassette-size digital radiography (DR) system. A prototype of the new CXDI-70C Wireless eliminates the sensor cable for improved operability while delivering greatly-enhanced image quality. The company is now working to further improve the model before its anticipated launch in the autumn, with plans to further reduce the weight of the device. A Canon spokesman said: “By eliminating the sensor cable, the newly-developed CXDI-70C Wireless enables handling similar to current film-cassette X-ray systems for effortless operability and superior portability. The model’s 35x43cm effective imaging area offers the same dimensions as current ISO4090 compliant film-cassette models, allowing digitalisation without the need to modify existing analogue imaging equipment. The model also includes a new Canon-developed glass substrate with a pixel pitch of 125 microns and, despite realising a higher resolution as compared with our current systems, the new model delivers an increased level of sensitivity. In addition, it also features a Cesium Iodide scintillator, which delivers high-quality images while reducing X-ray exposure for the patient.” The prototype version is being shown for the first time at the European Congress of Radiology being held in Vienna this week.

 

PROCUREMENT managers are being invited to share best practice and learn how to improve dialogue between commissioners and contractors at a seminar in London in the spring. The event on 27 May at The Hilton in Park Lane aims to demystify the procurement process by identifying the information requirements and necessary skills and expertise needed to deliver the best healthcare outcomes. During the day, delegates will examine the standards and guidelines contractors should adhere to in contracting out essential clinical services as well as identifying what NHS executives and expert commissioners want from contracting services with private providers. Contributors on the day will include Clare Morris from NHS Mid Essex, Mike Sobanja, chief officer at the NHS Alliance, and Kingsley Manning, director of Tribal Newchurch. The programme includes a case study of innovative partnerships at Braintree Community Hospital and a discussion around delivering a fully-integrated services contract. A spokesman for the organisers, HealthInvestor, said: “Clearer and better-led commissioning within public services is crucial in delivering better value for money, and for the procurement of private sector services to advance there needs to be a vast improvement in communication between the sectors. The public sector can influence the private sector to provide more cost-effective health care interventions, but only if there is dialogue between commissioners and contractors.”

 

ALSO IN THE NEWS: The Spire Wellesley Hospital in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, has installed an ACUSON S2000 diagnostic ultrasound system from Siemens Healthcare… Whitehouse Scientific announces the introduction of a new range of Monosized silica microspheres from 10 microns down to 1.5 microns… Sebia unveils the latest addition to its automated capillary electrophoresis portfolio - the Capillarys 2 Flex Piercing for clinical diagnostic laboratories