Development of a mobile low-field MRI scanner.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allows important visualization of the brain and central nervous system anatomy and organization. However, unlike electroencephalography (EEG) or functional near infrared spectroscopy, which can be brought to a patient or study participant, MRI remains a hospital or center-based modality. Low magnetic field strength MRI systems, however, offer the potential to extend beyond these traditional hospital and imaging center boundaries.

Combination of automated high throughput platforms, flow cytometry, and hierarchical clustering to detect cell state.

Background: This study examined whether hierarchical clustering could be used to detect cell states induced by treatment combinations that were generated through automation and high-throughput (HT) technology. Data-mining techniques were used to analyze the large experimental data sets to determine whether nonlinear, non-obvious responses could be extracted from the data.

Methods: Unary, binary, and ternary combinations of pharmacological factors (examples of stimuli) were used to induce differentiation of HL-60 cells using a HT automated approach.

Determination of P-glycoprotein inhibition by excipients and their combinations using an integrated high-throughput process.

Excipients often used in pharmaceutical formulations have been reported to have inhibitory effects on P-glycoprotein, an important membrane-associated transport protein. Because inhibition of efflux transporters can have an effect on drug bioavailability, identification of these excipients and their extent of inhibition are therefore important for pharmaceutical development. We have developed an automated and integrated high-throughput process for identifying these excipients and their combinations.

A high-throughput combinatorial approach for the discovery of a cremophor EL-free paclitaxel formulation.

Purpose: The purpose of this work was to replace Cremophor-EL in the commercial paclitaxel intravenous formulation, Taxol, using a novel high-throughput combinatorial formulation approach.

Methods: Full factorial combinations of 12 generally regarded as safe excipients at three different concentrations were screened using an automated liquid dispenser. The hit formulations were further optimized to give the final optimized formulation TPI-1.

Iterative high-throughput polymorphism studies on acetaminophen and an experimentally derived structure for form III.

Three crystal forms of acetaminophen were prepared and characterized using a newly developed high-throughput crystallization platform, CrystalMax. The platform consists of design software, robotic sample dispensing and handling, and high-throughput microanalytics and is capable of running thousands of crystallizations in parallel using several different methods to drive supersaturation and subsequent crystallization. Additionally, structural models of the elusive third form of acetaminophen will be discussed on the basis of powder X-ray diffraction data.