US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Installs TAP’s CompacT SelecT for Public Health Disease-Prevention Activities

The Automation Partnership's CompacT SelecT automated cell culture system has been set up at the prestigious Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the USA for crucial cell culture programmes and to eliminate contamination risk.

CDC’s Cell Culture Development Laboratory in Atlanta, Georgia, has recently installed the CompacT SelecT and researchers there are currently validating the system for the culture of MDCK cells that are used for growing influenza viruses. In the future, they plan to validate the system to grow Vero E6 cell lines for use in generating other viruses.

Increased demand for MDCK cell lines during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic prompted CDC to decide to move to an automated system to preserve staff resources and decrease the risk of laboratory contamination.

Tim Ward, Director of Cell Culture at TAP, said: “We are delighted a major disease prevention centre will be using our system for crucial cell culture programmes. The CDC’s use of CompacT SelecT will enhance productivity and help eliminate contamination risk, which will improve the reliability and consistency of cells. Those receiving cells from the CDC will benefit by having greater confidence that they are using optimum quality cells for applications such as vaccine research and production.”