Bio-rad Laboratories, Inc.

Camelbak Products, Inc.

Caliper Life Sciences, Inc.

Matthew Latham

William Strong

Robert Alan Iovanni

Nikolas Chmiel

Jeff Xu

Derek G Sullivan

Allen R Boronkay

Colin B Kennedy

Cory Panattoni

John Walker, Ii

Kara Kimmel

Electrotransfer is performed in an instrument that receives electroblotting cassettes and that contains an integrated power supply, controls, and a display that allows the user to monitor and control each of a plurality of cassettes individually through electrical contacts within the housing that mate with corresponding electrical contacts on the cassettes.

Instrument for independent electrotransfer in multiple cassettes

Slab gel cassettes for use in electrophoretic analyzes of biologically-derived mixtures are equipped with features that prevent the plastic walls of the cassettes from bowing outward when gels retained within the cassettes swell, as gels typically do during casting, storage, or both. In certain embodiments, these features are incorporated into, or mate with, the comb-shaped inserts that form the sample wells as the gels are being cast. In other embodiments, these features are complementary features incorporated into both the comb and the cassette.

Dimensional stabilization of slab gel cassettes to prevent distortion caused by swelling gels

Drink containers include a liquid container and a cap assembly removably coupled to the liquid container. Cap assemblies include a base, a drink spout extending from the base, a closure configured to be removably coupled relative to the drink spout in a closed position to selectively restrict dispensing of drink liquid through the drink spout and to selectively permit dispensing of drink liquid through the drink spout when removed from the drink spout. Cap assemblies further may include a handle extending from the base and configured to selectively retain the closure in a stowed position when the closure is selectively removed from the drink spout. In some embodiments, the handle defines a closed perimeter and the closure is received within the closed perimeter when positioned in the stowed position. Some embodiments further include a tether that couples the closure to the cap assembly or to the liquid container.

Drink containers with closure retention mechanisms

An electrotransfer cassette is formed in two parts that are releasably joined by a manually operated locking mechanism. The joined parts have electrical contact areas extending from the electrodes in the two parts of the cassette, the contact areas being exposed on an outer edge of the resulting cassette to form electrical connections to a power supply upon the simple insertion of the cassette into an instrument.

Electrotransfer cassette with integrated electrical contacts and locking mechanism

An electroblotting cassette is formed in three separable parts&#x2014;an upper plate, a lower plate, and a base that receives both plates, with electrodes mounted on both the upper and lower plates. The cassette accommodates transfer stacks of different thicknesses by its inclusion of a set of raised areas, known as 'lands,' on the floor of the base and a set of inverse lands on the underside of the lower electrode plate, the two sets being spatially arranged to either abut each other or be offset from each other, depending on the orientation of the lower plate, thereby allowing the user a choice between two heights of the lower plate within the base and hence two thicknesses of transfer stacks. Other arrangements include those with more than one set of lands on one or both parts to allow for three or more thickness selections, or depressions in place of lands. Finger-operated latches secure the upper plate to the base.

Electroblotting cassette with manually releasable electrodes of adjustable spacing

A priming unit for a microfluidics device contains a pressurization unit and pressure and temperature detectors as part of a feedback loop that controls the pressure applied by the pressurization unit and the time during which the pressure is applied. This control feature is particularly useful in controlling the exposure time of the microchannels to dyes in the priming liquids since certain dyes tend to adhere to the walls of the channels and produce non-uniform results.

Apparatus for priming microfluidics devices with feedback control

Slab gel electrophoresis cassettes constructed from two flat rectangular plates, with features that allow the plates to be joined parallel to and facing each other with a gap between them that is sealed at the sides and open at the top and bottom for access to upper and lower electrodes, respectively, are improved by two independent features. The first is the integration of an elastomeric gasket to the surface of one of the two plates to ensure a liquid-tight seal, while the second is the inclusion of edge engaging members that are mounted to one plate and engage an opposing edge of the other plate. The engaging members are manually engaged and released at will. In preferred constructions, the gasket is a strip that extends along the two sides and bottom of one of the plates, and each engaging member is pivotally and resiliently mounted to achieve a snap-type engagement.

Growing community of inventors

Dixon, CA, United States of America

Matthew Latham