GEN Supplements - Biopreservation and Biobanking
TTP Labtech: Biobank Automation Considerations
2019-11-23 03:03:19
Biobanks house collections of human biological specimens, including blood products, cell lines, nucleic acids, and human tissues, that are of fundamental importance to the development of biomarkers, the discovery of new drugs and for advancing the understanding of the mechanisms of disease.
The ability to collect, analyze, store, and distribute biospecimens for research or medical purposes, relies on meticulous care and attention to the integrity and organization of every sample at every step. The utility of biobanks depends on the quality and integrity of the samples they hold.
The ability to stay competitive in this niche market landscape will depend on investment in new technologies related to growing market trends, including digitization and automated processes. With funding concerns at front of mind, investment requests must involve careful consideration and thorough justification.
Within sample management, new automated technologies are regularly being implemented to improve the efficiency and productivity of workflows and to increase data consistency and reproducibility.
Automated storage solutions offer both quantitative and more intangible benefits, such as integrated sample traceability, secure storage, increased retrieval speed, and sample preservation.
For those able to invest, advances in automated sample storage and liquid handling technologies facilitate scalable growth and ease expansion planning. However, automation does not have to be an all-or-nothing investment, and in some cases, partial automation can be the most cost-effective method approach.
Automation pros and cons
There is no doubt that automation can change the way biobanks store and process samples for the better; however, current and future storage capacity requirements play a huge role in deciding whether automated solutions actually represent viable options.
Automation systems offer high-density storage capacity, 2D-barcoded tubes for registration and tracking, random access, and rapid cherry picking, all of which improve workflow speed and organization. Automating some, or all, of the steps can significantly minimize the costs associated with labor manually searching for samples.
Barriers to automation include the costs associated with equipment purchase, plus the significant changes to infrastructure and process that are required. Initial investment expenses for automation can be 5 to 10 times more than manual operations, and running costs for fully serviced automated systems must be considered.
There are, however, other factors to consider when weighing the advantages and disadvantages of automation. Labor costs, energy costs, and space considerations are easily assessed by quantitatively evaluating current usage and predicting future needs. Other “softer” factors such as sample security and integrity are extremely significant yet more difficult to quantitate.
Preanalytical variability in sample storage and handling can have a significant effect on test results, interpretations, and conclusions. Samples are at greatest risk when they are handled and transferred. Even a brief change in temperature can cause deterioration in molecular integrity, potentially leading to biased results. Thus, the quality of a sample must be protected at every step—collection, processing, transport, and storage—to protect the biobank’s reputation for quality and performance.
Automation offers convenience and saves space, energy, and time. It also improves sample integrity, traceability, and security while being undeniably more efficient. However, without a proper cost justification, automation might not be right for every environment.
It is important to first consider a biobank’s current environment. How many samples does the facility manage? What are the storage and order picking processes? What is the current electricity consumption level? For example, when managing 100,000 samples, a conventional biobank would utilize three standard -80°C freezers and manual picking. An automated biobank, however, can store this number of samples within one unit and provide effortless sample retrieval to speed processes, save energy, and floor space.
An automation analysis
At first glance storing 100,000 samples over 10 years manually may appear to be a better option financially. The initial outlay plus service costs associated with three freezers is approximately 15% of the cost to store one-hundred-thousand samples in one TTP Labtech arktic -80°C automated freezer spread over a 10-year period.
However, this simplistic calculation does not provide an accurate cost comparison for the two approaches. The automated freezer option includes the initial cost of the system, service, and electricity. Electricity costs can be grouped into this solution’s overall cost because air exchange is minimal. There is no difference in actively picking and managing samples versus passive freezing. By comparison, repeatedly opening and shutting freezers at each manual picking session increases power usage leading to fluctuating electricity costs. In addition, one must also remember to include the additional labor required for library management and sample picking when manual storing.
Where these additional tangible factors are included, cost comparisons indicate that biobank automation is clearly justified when picking 1,000+ samples per week and can be arguably justified for 500+ pick rates based on other factors. For less than 500, one should consider the level of priority that the more intangible factors of automation might have. These include space savings, workflow efficiency, sample accessibility, integrity, and security.
Reduced sample integrity can potentially result in the loss of precious data points, or unreliable data. To investigate the latter, TTP Labtech investigated the sample freezing and sample picking profiles of 1.4 mL vials each containing 0.97 mL in manual freezers, across different locations. These tests evaluated temperature variability in rack-based storage systems common in standard freezers and some automated solutions.
When freezing samples in a -80°C freezer, very different freezing profiles were observed depending on vial location in the racks and rack location in the freezer. A “penguin effect” was described where outer samples freeze within 5 to 20 minutes while inner samples take over one hour. Like penguins huddling to protect each other against the elements, inner vials in storage racks are effectively insulated against temperature change—taking considerably longer to freeze or thaw than the outer vials.
When picking samples from a -80°C freezer, the penguin effect is observed in reverse when placing samples on dry ice. Here, outer vials warm faster at up to a 50°C temperature change in less than 10 minutes. Thus, there is a false sense that using dry ice can maintain the sample temperature at a steady state.
Furthermore, the repeated opening and closing of the freezer door during picking can do unexpected harm. The monitored temperatures of samples in a freezer during one hour of picking were warmer than -70°C, with samples nearest to the door reaching -55°C.
By comparison, TTP Labtech’s automated storage systems demonstrate great care and attention to sample integrity through rackless storage eliminating “penguin effects.” Each sample tube is stored in an individual storage location with consistent and uniform temperature profiles to ensure each tube experiences the same freezing profile.
By maintaining a closed air exchange, temperature fluctuations occurring during cherry picking individual samples are minimized. An additional benefit of this approach is that each storage location can be accessed directly. Following a sample’s retrieval, its location becomes immediately available for the subsequent storage of another sample. The fragmentation issues associated with manual and automated systems utilizing racks for storage are circumvented, freeing up valuable time and resource.
Conclusion
Building an operational cost model for the working life of a system that considers library size, throughput requirements, and the value placed on the intangible benefits of automation can help to determine whether full or partial automation is the right move. Modular stores, such as those from TTP Labtech, can be up and running in as little as a week.
Download the White Paper bit.ly/32XrjPX
©Genetic Engineering Bio News. View All Articles.