Automated PBMC Isolation

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) are crucial components of the immune system, and their isolation from blood is essential for research in immunology, biomarker discovery, and drug development. Isolating PBMCs also allows for the identification of various immune cells, such as T cells, B cells, and natural killer cells, facilitating various therapeutic and diagnostic applications.

PBMCs are commonly isolated via density gradient centrifugation over Ficoll-Hypaque (or other density gradient), which requires precise transfers of the target blood layers without disturbing non-target blood layers.  This manual, labor-intensive procedure requires skilled technicians which can lead to variability in the PBMCs that are isolated. Switching this manual procedure to a largely automated one can improve the operational efficiency of this isolation process as well as reducing the overall costs.

Why automate PBMC isolation?

Our automated PBMC isolation platform is designed to simplify the process of isolating PBMCs from whole blood samples whilst also minimizing variability between samples. By utilizing Hamilton’s easyBlood STARlet™ liquid handling platform, we offer various advantages over traditional manual isolation methods. These include:

• Reduction of inaccuracies, contamination and inconsistencies that are associated with manual pipetting
• Shortened isolation time with high yields of PBMCs
• Improved sample integrity and reproducibility
• Advanced, optimized sample preparation and quality control guidelines
• Turnaround time within 72 hours of draw
• The ability to scale with your sample demands

How does our automated PBMC isolation service work?

Hamilton easyBlood STARlet’s high-resolution imaging software easily identifies plasma, buffy coat, and red blood cell layers which enables it to aliquot the buffy coat layer and red blood cells separately into new plates or tubes.  Sample images and associated processing parameters are stored and downloadable for full sample traceability, which is crucial for compliance requirements associated with clinical samples.  You can learn more about this workstation operates and the workflow involved in the video below

Applications

• Immune response studies
• Vaccine development
• Infectious disease studies
• Hematological malignancy studies
• Toxicological studies
• Biomarker discovery
• Drug development

Sample Quality control

We perform quality control checks to ensure that our PBMC samples meet the highest quality standards.

Pre-freeze samples:

• Minimum 0.75 x 106 cells per mL of starting blood yield
• Guaranteed cell viability of 90% or higher