School of Veterinary Medicine, Texas Tech University, 7671 Evans Dr., Amarillo, TX 79106, USA.
Sensors (Basel). 2022 Apr 23;22(9):3242. doi: 10.3390/s22093242.
A 96-well microplate reader for absorption spectroscopy was designed, constructed, and tested at a total cost of ca. 500 USD. The reduced cost of the device represents the major technical contribution of this manuscript, as costs were reduced 7 fold from previous reports. The device was able to achieve 3σ limits of detection of ca. 0.01 absorbance units (AU) over a 60 second measurement for the mid-visible wavelength range. Component parts are either commercially available, or 3D printed from plans. Analysis wavelength can be altered throughout the visible region through use of various photographic or theatrical filters. This feature allows the well plate reader to be used for typical laboratory assays such as cell population estimation by optical density (OD) at 600 nm, or enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) at 450 nm. This manuscript reports on the motivation and process of constructing the device, lists required parts, presents data demonstrating device function, and provides the community of scholars with plans to reproduce the work. The device can be reproduced in laboratories lacking sufficient resources to purchase commercially available options and this outcome contributes towards empowerment of individuals and equity of scientific enquiry.
我们设计、构建并测试了一种用于吸收光谱学的 96 孔微孔板读取器，总成本约为 500 美元。该设备的低成本是本文的主要技术贡献，因为与之前的报告相比，成本降低了 7 倍。该设备能够在 60 秒的测量时间内实现中可见波长范围内约 0.01 吸光度单位 (AU) 的 3σ 检测限。组件要么是市售的，要么是根据计划用 3D 打印的。通过使用各种摄影或戏剧滤光片，可以在整个可见区域中改变分析波长。此功能使微孔板读取器可用于典型的实验室测定，例如通过在 600nm 处的光密度 (OD) 估计细胞群体，或在 450nm 处进行酶联免疫吸附测定 (ELISA)。本文报告了构建该设备的动机和过程，列出了所需的部件，展示了证明设备功能的数据，并为学者社区提供了重现该工作的计划。在缺乏足够资源购买市售产品的实验室中，可以复制该设备，这有助于增强个人能力和促进科学探究的公平性。
