Robotics for the bioanalytical laboratory A flexible system for the analysis of drugs in biological fluids

Abstract The configuration of a robotic system for the complete automation of methods for trace level quantification of drugs in biological fluids is described. The system was designed to be applicable to numerous assays and to be rapidly switchable from one assay to the next. It employs a Zymate robot and various cost effective modules and components. The robot aliquots plasma and urine samples and performs dilution, mixing, precipitation, centrifugation, solvent extraction, evaporation, reconstitution and direct injection into a high-performance liquid chromatograph. An analytical report on each sample and a summary report on all samples are automatically produced for later incorporation into the data base. The effective reach of the robotic arm is limited to 1640 square inches of bench space. The bench space requirement is therefore an important criterion for the selection and design of robotic modules. A second important criterion is the failure rate. Because the present robot lacks the critical senses of touch and vision, some seemingly simple manual steps are difficult to automate. Effective substitutes for such steps have been devised. Some modifications of the manual method were required for effective automation. The robotic system was applied to several assays and the quality of the data generated was similar to or better than that of manual methods. The return on investment in robotic implementation is favorable.