Growth Curves Bioscreen C User manual

User's Manual
Bioscreen C
Oy Growth Curves Ab Ltd
2017
Version 2.1.12

Table of Contents
1. Inspection and Installation of the Bioscreen C System 2
2. System Description 3
2.1 Overview 4
2.2 Bioscreen C Reader 4
2.3 Software 5
3. Operation 6
3.1 Pre-Start Checklist 6
3.2 Planning an Experiment 6
3.3 Running an Experiment 7
3.4 Data Handling 10
4. Guide to Anaerobic Experiments 10
5. Guide to Manual Pipetting 11
6. Maintenance 12
6.1 Maintenance Steps & Frequency 12
6.2 Cleaning 12
6.3 Checking the Heat Transfer Fluid Level 13
6.4 Replacing the Fuses 13
6.5 Replacing the Lamp 14
7. Troubleshooting Guide 16
7.1 Optical Problems 16
7.2 Temperature Problems 17
7.3 Operational Problems 18
8. About Bioscreen 19
8.1 Product History 19
8.2 Unique Features of Bioscreen C 19
8.3 Applications 20
9. Technical Specifications 22
9.1 General Specifications 22
9.2 Safety Specifications 22
9.3 Photometric System 23
9.4 Incubator 23
9.5 Honeycomb 2 Microplates 23
9.6 PC Requirements 24
9.7 EU Directive on Waste (WEEE) 24
10. User Replaceable Parts 24
11. Appendix Warranty Statement
12. Appendix Bioscreen C Service Request
Bioscreen C Certificate of decontamination

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Thank you for choosing the Bioscreen C system.
We hope this system fulfills your expectations.
If you should have any questions or problems, please don’t hesitate to contact your
local Bioscreen C distributor.
Have a nice time with your versatile Bioscreen C!
Figure 1 The components of the Bioscreen C instrument.
Measurement
compartment
Incubator compartment:
2 Honeycomb Microplates,
sample tray
Heat transfer
fluid window
Thermo module
Lamp and
filter wheel
compartment
Main cover
Bioscreen keyboard for
built-in service tests
Bioscreen display

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1. INSPECTION AND INSTALLATION OF
THE BIOSCREEN C SYSTEM
It is very important to read these instructions carefully and to follow them in the presented order
(from 1 to 11). Wrong order might cause problems with the installation or the use of the Bioscreen C
system.
1. Check the parcel for visual damage
If there is damage on the parcel (holes, dents etc.), make a notification to the air waybill BEFORE accepting
the shipment. This will help with the insurance claim in case the content is damaged. Unless this notification
has been made, there is no possibility to claim insurance for a faulty Bioscreen C instrument!
2. Open the parcel, check for visual damage
One indication of possible damage is that the green measurement lid has jumped off from its place. This
indicates that the parcel has had some rough treatment on the way but it doesn’t necessarily mean that the
Bioscreen C is damaged.
3. Check the content of the package
The list of contents (Packing list) is placed on top of the instrument. Save the carton and the foam corners for
possible transportation or service of the Bioscreen C in the future.
4. Check the lamp (A & D in Figure 2)
Check that the lamp is intact and properly in its place.
5. Install the filter wheel
The filter wheel is in its own black container inside the Supplement pack. Avoid touching the filter lenses.
Fingerprints on the lenses diminish the amount of light passing through to the detector.
Install the wheel with the serial number on the wheel pointing towards the front of the Bioscreen C instrument.
The connection is magnetic, it will automatically pull the wheel into the right position (A in Figure 2).
6. Open the sample area cover (B & C in Figure 2)
Take the notification leaflet out from the sample area and make sure that all Bioscreen C users are informed
about the risk of a damaged detector lens with an improperly placed incubator cover.
Check that the incubator cover is placed properly on its hinges and that the cover is locked in its place. White
arrows on the incubator cover point to the hinges (see the notification leaflet for more information).
7. Install the driver for the USB-adapter
The USB-adapter and the CD are found in Accessory pack. Install the driver from the CD BEFORE
connecting the USB-adapter to the PC.
8. Connect the cables to the Bioscreen C and to the PC
Before turning the Bioscreen C on ALWAYS remember to check that the incubator cover is in its
right position. Improper placing of the cover can cause serious damage to the instrument which
is NOT covered by warranty!
Always close the lids before starting an experiment, as placing fingers etc. inside a running
instrument can cause serous physical injury.

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9. Turn on the Bioscreen C
10. Install the BioScreener software from the CD included
11. Run a short test measurement
Run a short test measurement with the BioScreener software to verify that your Bioscreen C system is
working properly. More details on how to run an experiment with BioScreener software can be found from
software’s internal help section. Details on how to insert the microplates etc. are found in section “3.3
Running an experiment” in this User’s Manual.
Figure 2 Positioning of the filter wheel, the halogen lamp and the incubator cover.

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2. SYSTEM DESCRIPTION
2.1 Overview
The Bioscreen C Microbiology Reader is a fully automated system developed to perform a wide range of
microbiology experiments. The system consists of:
Bioscreen C reader
BioScreener software
Honeycomb microplates (consumables)
PC (not provided by Growth Curves Ltd.)
All microorganisms (bacteria, mold, yeast, etc.) increase the turbidity of liquid growth medium when growing
and multiplying in it. Bioscreen C monitors this growth by measuring the turbidity of the medium in the wells of
a microplate. These measurements are done kinetically, and recorded as optical density (OD)
measurements. All functions are controlled by BioScreener software according to the parameters entered by
the user. OD values are recorded automatically by the software.
Bioscreen C is an open system: the user can decide what is studied in the the wells. Any microorganism,
broth or chemical can be pipetted into the wells for monitoring growth kinetically and automatically. Most of
the conventional test tube tests where the turbidity or color change occurs can be run with the "mini-tubes" in
a Honeycomb microplate with Bioscreen C.
For vertical light photometry, all visible light wavelengths can be used. The eight standard filters provided in
the filter wheel of Bioscreen C are: 405, 420, 450, 492, 540, 580, 600 nm and a wide band (420-580 nm)
filter. Filters with special wavelengths are available by request.
2.2 Bioscreen C Reader
The reader includes three interrelated systems: mechanical transport, incubator and optical system (for the
elements, see Figure 1). These three systems work in a coordinated way to provide automated
heating/cooling, sample indexing and OD readings.
2.2.1 Mechanical transport
The incubator tray assembly holds the Honeycomb microplates. The assembly shuttles from the microplate
loading section into the measurement compartment, where light is passed through each well of the
microplate and the detector makes the OD readings.
2.2.2 Incubator
The incubator consists of the incubator tray (fixed, non-removable), the incubator cover (on hinges) and a
temperature control system. After filling the microplate with experimental materials, the incubator cover is
placed manually on top of the incubator tray and properly closed. During the incubation and measuring, the
incubator cover remains in place.
The temperature control system maintains the incubation temperature set by the program. Ethylene glycol
and water mixture (1:1) is used as a heat transfer liquid. The liquid circulates continuously in the incubator
tray to keep the temperature stable and at a selected value. The temperature is continuously monitored and
saved by the software.
2.2.3 Optical system
The changes in turbidity or color in the culture medium, due to the growth of microorganisms, is measured
kinetically with a vertical photometer.

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A halogen lamp produces light which then passes through the chopper wheel. The light path is turned 90
degrees by a mirror. Then the light passes through the filter wheel. The interference filters are selected with
the PC software. Filtered light moves through an optical fiber to the lens assembly in the measurement
compartment, below the Honeycomb microplates. The light passes through the bottom of each well and
results are collected by the detector. The detector is on a retractable arm which moves into the right places
above the plate.
The measuring device is moved along the Y-axis while the incubator tray with the microplate is moved along
the X-axis. This enables rapid measurement of all wells in the microplate.
Figure 3 The optical system.
2.3 Software
The BioScreener®software is designed to run Bioscreen C experiments. BioScreener SW is a combination of
the proven functions of the previous softwares used with Bioscreen C.
BioScreener stores all settings and results from the experiment in a .bsm file. Results can be exported to
common data files such as xls or csv for graph generation and analysis with another software of your choice.
Please remember to save the data on a local hard drive, do not use network disks. You can always
transfer the measurement files to a network disk after the experiment is completed. This way your experiment
won’t be interrupted by possible network errors.
2.4 Honeycomb®Microplates
Bioscreen C uses unique 10x10-well Honeycomb microplates with lids. These plates are especially designed
to give unmatched temperature distribution between the samples and also to minimize evaporation of the
Halogen lamp
Chopper wheel
UV-mirror
Filter wheel
Optical fiber
Lens
Detector
2 Honeycomb
microplates with
covers (200 samples)

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sample liquids.
The instrument can handle one or two 100-well Honeycomb microplates at a time. Each well of the microplate
can be considered as an individual test vessel. Thus monitoring the microbiological growth in 200
experiments can be performed simultaneously in a single run.
Honeycomb microplates are sterilized by gamma radiation, packed in individual bags and sold in boxes of
100 microplates each.
Honeycomb multiwell microplate technology positions 100 wells in a similar footprint as a 96-well microplate.
The microplate was designed to assure the best temperature distribution across the microplate, as well as to
eliminate evaporation and condensation, common problems with conventional 96-well microplates.
The unique incubator of Bioscreen C has liquid circulation which is cabable of cooling the samples below the
ambient temperature and ensures constant temperature to all wells. This is essential for developing high
quality growth curves.
3. OPERATION
3.1 Pre-Start Checklist
Check that the filter wheel is clean.
Check that there are no spills inside the instrument.
Check that there is enough heat transfer fluid.
Check that the desired incubating temperature is not more than 6 C below ambient.
Check that the cables are connected properly.
3.2 Planning an Experiment
3.2.1 Sample number
The instrument can handle one or two Honeycomb microplates at a time. There are 100 wells per microplate,
hence the total amount of samples can be 1-200 in a single run.
3.2.2 Sample volume
Growth medium to be used in an experiment must be in a liquid form. The maximum sample + growth
medium volume per well is 400 µl. Excess filling can cause flooding during shaking. There is no
recommended minimum volume, but with very small volumes evaporation can cause problems to the
experiment.
When choosing the sample volume, consider also possible behaviour of the sample during its incubation and
the entire experiment. If the microorganisms in the sample are supposed to create gas, make sure that you
don’t fill the wells too much. Flooding of the wells can cause damage to the parts underneath the incubator
tray.
3.2.3 Incubating temperature
The incubation temperature selection ranges from 1 to 60 C in steps of 0.1 C. The maximum temperature
of 60 C is reached when the incubator cover is 60 C and the incubator tray holding the samples has
reached 59 C. Bioscreen C can reach 6 C below and 30 C above ambient temperature (see Figure 4). If
lower temperatures are desired, the whole Bioscreen C must be placed in a cooled room.

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Example 1. At ambient temperature 10 C the incubating temperature can be set at 4 - 40 C.
Example 2. At ambient temperature 20 C the incubating temperature can be set at 14 - 50 C.
Example 3. At ambient temperature 30 C the incubating temperature can be set at 24 - 60 C.
Figure 4 Range of incubating temperatures that can be selected at different ambient temperatures.
3.2.4 Filters
Up to 3 of the eight filters on the filter wheel can be chosen to be used in a single measurement. The
wavelengths of the standard filters are 405-600 nm. The wideband filter (420-580 nm) is less sensitive to
color changes than the other filters so the results are not affected so much by change of color of growth
medium.
3.2.5 Shaking
BioScreener software has various shaking protocols. It also includes parameters from previous Bioscreen C
softwares (eg. EZExperiment SW and BioLink SW), which can be used by selecting appropriate compatibility
mode from BioScreener’s Additional options menu.
60 °C
50 °C
40 °C
30 °C
20 °C
10 °C
0 °C
10 °C
0 °C
20 °C
30 °C
40 °C
50 °C
Ambient temperature
Range of available incubation temperatures
at ambient temperature of 25 C.
Temperature
70 °C
25 °C