BEE International Blog

When you're looking for cell disruption equipment for the research laboratory equipment you need a system that is flexible. You're probably aware of the final goal of the research program but since it's research, it's all about trying different things out. If your equipment doesn't let you try things out it's the wrong equipment for the research environment. 

Flexibility

Some cell lysis equipment uses shear. Others use sonic cavitation. Ours uses shear, cavitation and impact- and the user can adjust the relative amount of each force for different applications or to see which procedure works best for a particular application. You may have thought your research team was trying to produce a biological in bacteria and therefore just needed a sonicator, but when they realize the biologic isn't full active unless processed in an eukaryotic system and switch to yeast you'll wish you had bought the BEE homogenizer instead. 

Scalability

Many research laboratory managers don't consider scalability when making purchasing decisions for the research setting. This is one of the reasons the once popular French Press is no longer a viable choice. Because everything is done small-scale in the research laboratory it just isn't a consideration. Let's say your lab started out with bacteria and bought a sonicator. Then they switched to a yeast system. The lab manager refused to buy more expensive equipment, so the team started using an enzymatic lysis method. The purified biologic showed tremendous potential in early experiments. The team proposed to start some clinical trials- which requires scaling up production. However, the costs of scaling up enzymatic lysis of yeast can be prohibitive. The entire research program could be shelved on budgetary grounds before it barely gets started- due to failure to consider "scalability" at the earliest steps. It would be sad if the cure for the cold was shelved because someone decided to not buy a BEE homogenizer. 

As a cell lysis device a BEE homogenizer is fully scalable because all of the parameters are tightly controlled and fully reproducible. After the research team spends weeks changing the parameters on their cell lysis unit to find the optimal method of cell disruption, these parameters can simply be used on a larger scale. All BEE units allow for full control over the pressures and fluid velocities being used during the process. 

Designed for the lab

For the laboratory setting, BEE offers three different sizes of laboratory homogenizers as cell disruption devices. The largest has a flow rate of 250 ml per minute. It can be placed on a standard laboratory bench and is self-cooling so it doesn't have to take up space in the cold room. The smallest unit can process a sample as small as 15 ml, and offers a wide range of operating pressures to allow for experimentation and optimization. It is also self-cooling and is smaller than many desktop centrifuges. The intermediate size can process a sample as small as 15 ml, but can also process up to 15 liters per hour. 

Our cell lysis equipment is the best, whether you want it for the research setting or for large-scale production. Don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions. 

Delivering therapeutic compounds into people or animals can be quite challenging. Digestive fluids destroy many compounds, including the biologics many pharmaceutical companies have been investigating lately. Taking drugs by injection doesn't appeal to most people, and increases the risk of infection from needles. 

Transdermal drug delivery

One of the major functions of the skin is to keep out foreign agents. The skin does this with great efficiency, including keeping out pharmaceuticals. There are many advantages then, if the skin barrier can be overcome by transdermal delivery of pharmaceuticals. The drug can be released slowly and continuously into the system. Since the drug doesn't enter the body via the digestive tract it doesn't go through the liver's detoxification systems before reaching the parts of the body that need it. The only problem is getting the drug through the skin barrier.

What is a microemulsion?

Microemulsions have been under extensive study recently, as possible transdermal drug delivery systems. A microemulsion is a clear or transparent system with stable particles smaller than 150 nm. The emulsions which most of us are familiar with are cloudy or milky with large particles, and are not stable, eventually separating into its various phases. 

Microemulsions are ideal for transdermal drug delivery. Once created, they are stable. They can carry both hydrophilic and lipophilic drugs. Due to their structure, microemulsions can carry very high concentrations of drugs, and have an enhanced ability to pass through the skin. The small size of the particles, action of the surfactants on the skin, and the continuously fluctuating interphases can breach the skin's barrier.

Studies of the ideal microemulsion to carry specific drugs into the body through the skin are ongoing. Reducing the particle size may improve the penetration of most emulsions. Varying the oils, surfactants, and viscosity of the microemulsion can all affect the ability of the microemulsion to deliver drugs through the skin. Microemulsions can even be created that only deliver drugs into the skin rather than through it. The cosmetic industry uses microemulsions to deliver anti-wrinkle products into the skin's layers. 

Skin irritation?

One concern with the use of microemulsions to deliver drugs is their ability to irritate skin. In tests conducted to date, microemulsions, in general, seem to be far less irritating than solutions of sodium lauryl sulfate, a moderate to severe skin irritant. Most microemulsions have been about as irritating to the skin as saline. Test subjects exposed to microemulsions for up to four days exhibited no skin redness or apparent irritation. 

Microemulsions show great promise as drug delivery systems. If your research lab needs particle size-reduction equipment to expedite research into the ideal microemulsion to carry a particular pharmaceutical across or into the skin, don't hesitate to contact us.