New Biomek® FX ADMETox Workstation Delivers Validated, Automated Solution For Drug Development

Beckman Coulter introduces the Biomek FX ADMETox Workstation for in vitro drug permeability measurements. This new, validated solution automates the PAMPA (Parallel Artificial Membrane Permeability Analysis) method for the determination of passive absorption of a drug candidate through an artificial lipid membrane. Made possible through a recently announced agreement between Beckman Coulter and pION, Inc., the high-throughput system automates pION's method for PAMPA analysis on Beckman Coulter's Biomek FX liquid handling system.

The PAMPA method provides significant time savings as compared to the Caco-2 cell-based method, which takes over three weeks to complete. With PAMPA, the set up and assay run time enable data collection in less than five hours. The PAMPA method mimics the permeability of drug candidates across the intestinal wall in the human gastrointestinal tract. In addition, the PAMPA method can be run on the Biomek FX ADMETox Workstation to mimic the permeability of drug candidates across the human blood brain barrier or can be used for pesticide research in plants. The PAMPA Evolution 96* Software controls all aspects of the permeability assay including all liquid handling steps.

"Unlike other approaches to the automation of permeability assays, we are able to offer a turnkey solution through our relationship with pION," explained David Daniels, Applications Marketing Manager for Beckman Coulter. "pION is the clear leader in PAMPA technology and with our integrated liquid handling systems, we're able to seamlessly link 96/384-well pipetting, incubation and detection to deliver an unparalleled level of throughput."

Beckman Coulter, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of biomedical testing instrument systems, tests and supplies that simplify and automate laboratory processes. Spanning the biomedical testing continuum – from systems biology and clinical research to laboratory diagnostics and point-of-care testing – Beckman Coulter's 200,000 installed systems provide essential biomedical information to enhance health care around the world. The company, based in Fullerton, Calif., reported 2003 annual sales of $2.2 billion with 64 percent of this amount generated by recurring revenue from supplies, test kits and services.