Taking Special Care of Dangerous Pathogens

The P4 Inserm-Jean Mérieux laboratory in Lyon is Europe’s largest high security pathogen laboratory, and relies on the flexibility, robustness and reliability of Tecan’s Infinite® 200 PRO monochromator–-based microplate reader for use with Risk Group 4 pathogens including the Ebola, Marburg, Lassa, Nipah and Hendra viruses. Stéphane Mely, Biological Technics Engineer in the in vitro experimentation and diagnostic team at P4, explained: “We chose the Infinite 200 PRO specifically for absorbance-, luminescence- and fluorescence-based assays performed in accordance with very special BSL4 conditions. These include ELISAs, bioluminescence detection using luciferase activity, and pathogen detection with molecules coupled with fluorophores.”

“One of the most important aspects of equipment in a Category 4 laboratory is robustness, not least because of limited access to the laboratory for maintenance and repairs. The Infinite 200 PRO’s resistance to decontamination products such as hydrogen peroxide is essential for our work, and its monochromator system allows us to work with any wavelength we need, without considering whether or not we have the correct filters. It is simple to use, a convenient size and, like all Tecan instruments, is known to be a robust device.”