India in Industrial Synthetic Biology field
PerkinElmer Inc has collaborated with Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT) to open “explorerTM G3 Project,” an advanced high-throughput screening facility at DBT-ICT Centre for Energy Biosciences in Mumbai.
The new cutting-edge screening facility will house fully automated robotic system integrated with different instruments like JANUS G3 Liquid Handler, Colony Picker, Thermal Cycler, Multimode Reader and Automated Incubators for microbial screening and characterization applications. This will greatly reduce the overall screening time and automate all the workflows leading to better productivity.
The facility was inaugurated by Dr Renu Swarup, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Union Ministry for Science & Technology and Managing Director, Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC).
Dr Swarup said: “This collaboration would be another step towards positioning India in the field of Industrial Synthetic Biology, which will help researchers and students develop advanced competencies in life sciences and renewable biological research.”
Prof G. D. Yadav, Vice Chancellor, ICT, added: “DBT-ICT has emerged as one of the India’s leading Centre of Excellence in the area of industrial biotechnology.
“The robotic platform that has been customized and built in collaboration with PerkinElmer will help us automate our workflows and fasten up our pace to design and create those microorganisms that would convert waste derived carbon into useful products like biofuels and biochemicals that are required for our country.”
Speaking on the occasion, Jayashree Thacker, President, PerkinElmer India, said: “We, at PerkinElmer, are delighted to work together with DBT-ICT on this important Biofuels research initiative which leverages PerkinElmer’s robotic automation platform – the explorer™ G3 integrated workstation.”
PerkinElmer brings together innovative technologies and application expertise to automate science and help scientists address scientific challenges.
“Our application-focused, customizable, integrated robotic system helps automate and optimize research workflows. With our collaboration with DBT-ICT, we look forward to extending our applications to the field of bio-energy,” she added.
Since 1981, PerkinElmer has offered instruments and services to customers in India, spanning a wide range of markets including diagnostics, pharmaceutical, food safety, agriculture, chemical, plastics and automotive. The Company established direct operations in India in 2004 and currently has more than 10,000 customers and over 450 employees in India. fiinews.com
