News & Events

The Next Generation in Automated Sample Processing for
the BDProbeTec™ ET System

BD Diagnostic Systems, Sparks, MD announces the immediate availability of the BD Viper™ Sample Processor, for use with the BDProbeTec™ System - a groundbreaking clinical instrument for molecular in vitro diagnostic applications.

An important workflow advancement for the BDProbeTec™ System, the BD Viper™ Sample Processor automates the sample handling associated with high-volume testing. An industrial-grade robot achieves maximum reliability by performing pipetting transfers without the use of syringe pumps and tubing. Minimal routine maintenance is required as a result of the BD Viper™ Sample Processor's simple, reliable design. Technicians benefit with the reduction of repetitive motions. And at the same time the accuracy of pipetting is enhanced, compared to manual pipetting where fatigue and distraction can cause errors. Overall, the BD Viper™ Sample Processor improves laboratory efficiency by reducing labor, while at the same time assuring high throughput accuracy.

The BD Viper™ Sample Processor is currently available for use with the BDProbeTec™ ET System's DNA amplified assays for Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae. The BDProbeTec™ ET System reader offers simultaneous amplification and detection in a real time, one-hour format. When combined with the BD Viper™ Sample Processor, the user gains real efficiency at the most labor-intensive steps for amplified systems - sample handling and amplification/detection.

The BDProbeTec™ ET System, first marketed in 1999, is the only real-time DNA amplification assay cleared by the FDA for the detection of Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Simple workflow, minimal labor and high throughput have combined to create testing efficiency for laboratories throughout the world. Up to 564 samples for Chlamydia trachomatis alone or 552 samples for Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae combined can be completed in a single eight-hour shift using the BD Viper™ Sample Processor with the BDProbeTec™ ET System reader.

The BDProbeTec™ ET System's assays feature homogeneous amplification and real-time detection technology, combining the power of BD proprietary strand displacement amplification (SDA), with an energy transfer (ET) detection method. SDA is a patented isothermal amplification technology capable of generating billions of copies of target molecules from a single DNA or RNA template in just minutes.

For further information contact a BD Diagnostic Systems Sales Professional or call toll-free 1-800-553-3470.

BD, BDProbeTec and Viper are trademarks of Becton, Dickinson and Company.
©2002 Becton, Dickinson and Company
July 2002