XEI Scientific's Evactron® CombiClean™

XEI Scientific Inc, manufacturers of more than 1,100 EVACTRON® De-Contaminator Plasma Cleaning Systems for electron microscopes and other vacuum chambers, recently released its new Evactron® CombiClean™ system which simplifies the control and operation of plasma radical sources for both column and desktop cleaning of specimens for electron columns used in SEMs, TEMs and FIBs.

With over 1,100 Evactron De-Contamination systems in use primarily on electron columns (SEMs, TEMs and FIBs), XEI Scientific is expanding applications of their effective downstream plasma cleaning technology. Earlier this year XEI introduced the Evactron® SoftClean™ Chamber which allows users to mount Evactron Plasma Radical Sources (PRS's) onto a desktop vacuum chamber to provide the same effective removal of problematic hydrocarbon contamination from samples, holders and other parts before they are placed in the electron column.

Using RF and a patented hollow cathode electrode, Evactron systems produce a plasma that is contained in the PRS module. Reactive gas radicals are generated and drawn into the sample chamber where they chemically break down unwanted hydrocarbon molecules into smaller constituents which are then easily removed by the instrument's vacuum system.

At the Microscopy and Microanalysis meeting in Nashville, TN on August 7-11 XEI Scientific will introduce the Evactron CombiClean™ System to simplify the control and operation of multiple PRS modules on columns and desktops. With a new integrated controller and vacuum chamber, operators can easily select which PRS is active via the system front panel and seamlessly switch between column cleaning and desktop de-contamination of parts destined for use in the microscopes.

Evactron® CombiClean™ system.

Other benefits include multiple insertion ports for cleaning TEM sample holders. The cleaning chamber may function as a secure, long-term storage container for decontaminated samples. It has a large circular lid for convenient access to insert samples, while dry nitrogen purging prevents back streaming after plasma cleaning and during sample storage to allow the use of rotary vane pumps. Attractively priced and with a small footprint, this new cleaning solution continues the nearly 20 year tradition established by XEI of providing cost effective and innovative solutions to improve the performance of electron and ion imaging tools.

For further information on how to improve the image quality in electron or ion microscopes, view website: www.Evactron.com or e-mail: sales@evactron.com

Optibrium launches new version of free StarVue app

Optibrium, a provider of software solutions for drug discovery, today launches a new version of StarVue, its innovative free desktop application that enables scientists to quickly and conveniently view sets of compound structures and related data. The latest version of StarVue can be downloaded free from Optibrium's on-line community.

StarVue 1.1 is newly compatible with the recently released StarDrop 5, a software platform that intuitively guides the design and selection of high quality compounds in drug discovery. This compatibility improves the ease with which compound data generated with StarDrop and other sources can be shared, without the need for expensive spreadsheet plug-ins.

The new version of the StarVue desktop application, specifically designed for scientists searching for a simple way to explore molecule structures and associated data, has been developed in response to feedback received following its initial launch in February 2010. Improvements have been introduced to the way data can be browsed while retaining the innovative visual interface and capacity for organising, sorting and merging data sets that StarVue previously offered. Data can be easily loaded into StarVue from SD, MOL, SMILES or CSV files, as well as StarDrop's native format.

The close integration of StarVue and StarDrop makes the results of StarDrop's unique predictions and multi-parameter analysis available to a wider audience, improving the flow of information and a project team's ability to make effective decisions to quickly target novel molecules with the required balance of properties to become drug development candidates.

Free StarVue support is available via Optibrium's on-line community, accessible at: www.optibrium.com/community.  This website provides direct access to the Optibrium support team and other StarVue and StarDrop users, encouraging a rich environment for user interaction and idea sharing. The Optibrium community forum gives users the opportunity to discuss best-practice methods and approaches in the drug optimisation field.

For a free copy of StarVue, view website: www.optibrium.com/starvue or email info@optibrium.com 

ALMSCO International's high definition GC/MS technology
enables trace level detection of pesticides in complex Apple Matrix

ALMSCO International, a division of Markes International Ltd., offer a new high definition GC/MS method enabling scientists to screen for persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as pesticides at trace levels in complex apple matrices, without dependence on extensive sample clean-up. The new method, which is one component of ALMSCO's extensive food safety offering, is designed to offer optimal sensitivity without comprising speed of analyses and selectivity. This application is detailed in a poster entitled "Environmental and food safety screening of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) by GC(xGC)/TOF MS without dependence on extensive sample clean-up".

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs), including pesticides and dioxins, are chemical compounds produced by human activity and are widely distributed in the environment by natural processes, persisting for many years after forming. POPs become more concentrated as they move up the food chain and food is therefore the most common source of human exposure to these dangerous substances. Pesticides are often used to prevent, destroy and control pests on food crops and can leave residues on agricultural products.

This poses a risk to consumers and consumption can result in effects ranging from short-term health problems such as headaches and dizziness to long-term damage to the nervous system and, in some cases, cancer.

Continuous monitoring of pesticides in food is key in controlling exposure and facilitating regulatory compliance. Traditionally, in food industries and quality control (QC) laboratories samples can be rapidly and quantitatively screened for compliance in fast analytical cycles by using triple quadrupole GC/MS. However, when bringing new MRM methods online or adding more compounds to existing methods, it can be difficult to analyse for new and potentially toxic compounds in complex matrices. High definition GC/MS technology, such as ALMSCO International's Bench-top time of flight

(TOF) BenchTOF-dx, has emerged as a powerful and cost-effective technique for selective, sensitive and precise detection of low level pesticides in food samples. The new method developed by ALMSCO analyses pesticides in a complex apple matrix and enables analysts to screen for both known and unknown compounds at much lower levels with a high degree of definition and clarity. Sample components can be clearly identified, quantified and differentiated from one another, while also retaining the required attributes of speed and selectivity. With modern high definition GC/MS technology, samples can be prepared more quickly and analysed with higher throughput, while also fulfilling regulatory requirements.

In this method, researchers analysed 23 pesticides in a complex apple matrix using the GC/TOF technology. The results show that a BenchTOF-dx platform enables extraction at sub unit mass, substantially reducing matrix effects.

When combined with comprehensive GCxGC technology, sub unit mass extraction offers the possibility to further extend the list of analytes that can be screened in a single analysis within a given time. This method enables high performance and productivity pesticide analysis and the sensitivity of the BenchTOF-dx removes the need for extensive sample clean-up. Enhanced productivity is especially beneficial in cases of increased sample demands, for example during a food safety crisis. The launch of this application highlights ALMSCO's expertise in food safety testing.

For further information, view website: www.almsco.com e-mail: enquiries@almsco.com or http://www.almsco.com/downloads/publications.aspx

Thermo Scientific Revco UxF Series provides outstanding performance, storage capacity and energy efficiency

The new Thermo Scientific Revco UxF Series ultra-low temperature (ULT) freezers  provide outstanding sample protection, while maintaining high standards in energy efficiency and capacity per footprint, these new freezers excel in both design and security. Equipped with a unique touch-screen control panel that features an event log, health monitoring system and controlled access options, the Revco^® UxF Series provides a constant update on the integrity and health of the freezer compartment. The company showcased the products during Clinical Lab Expo at AACC 2011, at the Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, Georgia.

The Revco UxF freezers maximize sample storage capacity while minimizing the freezer's footprint inside the lab. Five new capacities range in size from 421 - 949 liters (14.9 - 33.5 cu. ft.) and provide a number of options to suit any storage and lab space requirements. The freezers' new cabinet design and vacuum panel insulation allow storage of up to 70,000 2mL tubes or 118,300 1mL Thermo Scientific Cryobank tubes…../Continued on the next page.

Analytik reports on the research and contract
work of the Armes Group at the University of Sheffield
using the CPS disc centrifuge for particle characterisation

Analytik, leading suppliers of innovative analytical instrumentation, talk about the particle characterisation work performed by Professor Steve Armes and his team in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Sheffield.

Among the research interests of Professor Steve Armes is the synthesis and characterisation of colloidal systems. His group has used disc centrifuge photo-sedimentometry to size a wide range of latexes, sols and colloidal nanocomposite particles over the last fifteen years. One of the tools used is the high resolution 24,000 rpm disc centrifuge from CPS. This has delivered reliable results with a wide range of latexes and nanocomposite particles. This new instrument has a maximum centrifugation rate of 24,000 rpm, which is substantially faster than the older Brookhaven disc centrifuge (15,000 rpm). This means that much smaller particles can now be sized with good accuracy and reproducibility.

The CPS disc centrifuge has proved to be particularly useful for sizing a family of new poly(2-hydropropyl methacrylate) latexes prepared by aqueous dispersion polymerisation (see A. M. Ali et al., Soft Matter, 2007, 2, 1003-1013). Since poly(2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate) is soluble in alcohol, these particular latexes become swollen in methanol/water mixtures, which is the normal spin fluid used for the Brookhaven instrument. This means that the solid-state particle density determined by helium pycnometry is no longer applicable, which invalidates the particle size measurement. In contrast, the wholly aqueous spin fluid used in the CPS disc centrifuge prevents latex swelling and allows meaningful particle size analyses to be performed. Other advantages offered by the CPS disc centrifuge include its Windows software and straightforward mode of operation which is well suited to sizing the many different samples encountered within a typical laboratory day. This is additionally useful to the Armes research group as they also offer a particle size analysis service to industrial companies.

Discussing his use of the CPS, Professor Armes said, "We have shown that the CPS disc centrifuge offers a very convenient means of verifying whether silica redistribution occurs when polymer-silica nanocomposite particles are challenged with excess latex. Such redistribution is accompanied by incipient flocculation, which is readily detected if the challenging latex is chosen to have a different size to the original nanocomposite particles. Although we have also characterised silica redistribution using small-angle x-ray scattering, electron microscopy and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, we find that the CPS disc centrifuge is the easiest and most convenient technique for simply establishing whether this phenomenon has occurred or not. The CPS instrument has proved to be an indispensable characterisation tool in our research programme and it should provide us with robust, reliable particle sizing capability for many years to come."

To learn more about high-resolution particle size characterisation using the CPS Disc Centrifuge, view website: www.analytik.co.uk