Không lây nhiễm chéo: Máy siêu âm hiệu suất cao cho phòng thí nghiệm NGS

A High-Performance Ultrasonicator for Lab workflows must deliver two things at once: precise nucleic acid fragmentation and absolute sample integrity. Cross contamination is a tough problem for molecular biology sequencing labs. When composing libraries for next-gen sequencing (NGS), shearing chromatin for CHIP-Seq, or extracting DNA from rare clinical samples, even minuscule amounts of foreign nucleic acid can ruin the model.

Contaminating plasmid sequences and disrupted vector genomes in

the liver following adeno-associated virus gene therapy | Nature Medicine

Importance of This Problem in NGS Workflows

Next-gen sequencing technologies have revolutionized research in genomics and clinical diagnostics. Their rapid technological advancements and sequencing capabilities have revolutionized the field, but the technologies can work easily with DNA sourced from different locations, and the sensitivity of the technologies can be both positive and negative. With NGS technologies, even trace amounts of nucleic acid can produce false positive results, inconclusive results, or even failed tests.

In 2025, a published study of four different PCR prototocols from different centers in Europe released a study claiming to have detected the sequences of the hepatitis B virus with between 48 and 100 percent coverage of the genome in the negative control samples of all four prototocols. This is not a statistical anomaly, but rather, a systemic risk due to contamination that traditional methods of sample preparation can’t eliminate.

There are multiple ways to have cross-contamination, such as:

•DNA spreading through the air: Ultrasonic energy on open vessels can produce DNA-droplet mists and disturb adjacent samples.

•Fluid residues on reusable probes: Probe-based sonicators require a physical connection, making total disinfection between runs a challenge.

•Plate manipulation causing splashes: Manual/automated transfers can be opportunities for sample carryover.

•Surface carry-over: Insufficiently cleaned work surfaces/instrument components can spread contaminations to future runs.

These risks increase in places where dozens or hundreds of samples must be processed every day. The consequences are even more severe in clinical settings where cross-contamination can bring about a false diagnosis or call for a change in a patient's prescribed actions.

Limitations of Traditional Methods

One of the well-known and traditional techniques for DNA fragmentation and cell disruption is probe-based ultrasonication. In this technique, a sample is placed in a vessel and a metallic probe tip is submerged.

Though this method is getting a lot of traction, it has the tendency to cause sample probe cross-contamination. During a sample processing run, the probe must contact the sample in the vessel directly. In order to avoid cross-contamination while processing runs, probe-associated cross-contamination must be dealt with. There are tons of possibilities of things being missed during sample processing, especially with more viscous or adherent samples, stray sample cross-contamination. Probe-assisted sample processing must be dealt with. Worn probe tips can shed particles and cause sample cross-contamination.

Water bath ultrasonication presents a different set of problems. Samples are placed in floating racks inside a shared water bath. While the probe does not contact the samples directly, the bath water circulates between vessels. When a tube leaks or cracks mid-processing, its contents leak into the bath. The contents can recirculate into adjacent samples. This process makes for difficult-to-detect cross-contamination as there is no physical or direct transfer of the leaking material.

How Focused Ultrasonication Solves the Problem

A high-performance ultrasonicator for lab workflows using focused ultrasound technology shifts the paradigm of contamination. The principle is simple, yet powerful: there is an ultrasonic contact provided by an external source, but the contact is through the fluid medium and is direct to the sample container. The sample is contained in a fully sealed, single-use container/tube during the processing cycle.

Longlight Technology's BoFU-1600 Focused Ultrasonicator is designed around this non-contact processing paradigm. The instrument uses focused acoustic energy to concentrate high-frequency, short-wavelength sound waves directly onto the sample zone. Because there is no probe to contact the sample and no shared bath water to circulate between tubes, contamination vectors are eliminated before they can arise.

Here is how non-contact processing delivers cleaner, more reliable results:

•Closed-vessel integrity: Samples remain in sealed centrifuge tubes from start to finish. There is no pathway for foreign DNA to enter the reaction vessel

•No aerosol generation: Because the tube remains sealed, ultrasonic cavitation happens inside a closed environment. No aerosolized droplets escape, ensuring adjacent samples or surfaces remain uncontaminated.

•No probe-related carryover. There are no probing materials carryover because there are no probes to clean/sterilize.

Untouched between runs, and each sample in a separate tube, there are no materials carryover.

The Covaris S220 Focused Ultrasonicator also uses technology that does not generate aerosols and that does not involve contact-batch processing in order to prevent contamination. Leading NGS workflow automation platforms are integrating focused ultrasonication, reducing shearing steps up to 80%, reducing NGS library preparation time by 30%, and reducing the risk of contamination.

Pragmatic Ansvers to the Needs of Contemporary Labs

BoFU-1600 was developed by use of technology that meets the realities of contemporary genomics labs. This system includes the free processing mode, which allows the operator to set processing parameters independently for each of the up to sixteen samples, and the batch processing mode, which allows the operator to process identical samples with a single action.

The high-accuracy temperature control system maintained throughout sample ultrasonication greatly reduced the risk of artifacts that occur in the sampled substrates due to thermal control factors. Dramatic alterations caused by heat can create the illusion of variability or even true signals and ultimately lead to the obfuscation of the signals researchers are seeking. These artifacts can lead researchers to costly and time-consuming research dead ends.

The instrument is quiet with no need for sound insulation and has a built-in OS to function autonomously with no external computer. Other features include passive drainage with water-level monitoring for overflow prevention. Information storage at any desired point in time aids in QC processes and audits and relocation of methods across sites/labs.

Responding to Market Needs

The Compound Annual Growth (CAGR) from 2025 to 2031 of the global focused ultrasonicator for DNA cutting market is 5.5 percent. The projected sales for the focused ultrasonicator for DNA cutting market is expected to be USD 530 and 731 million in 2025 and 2031, respectively. This is indicative to the industry and community that the sample prep method of the traditional sample preparation are dated and cannot satisfy the reproducibility and standardization needs of the genomics. Contamination controlled is the standard for the ultrasonicator, therefore the need for reproducibility, precision, and infection proliferation free cut DNA technology is expected to grow as the genomics, precision medicine, and synthetic biology proliferate.

Lời kết

The lab ultrasonicator has a higher profit margin and therefore will benefit the genomics labs, as it aids in sample cross-contamination. Non-contact focused ultrasonication addresses contamination at its source by keeping samples sealed, eliminating aerosol generation, and removing physical contact pathways entirely. Longlight Technology's BoFU-1600 delivers this capability in a compact, quiet, easy-to-use instrument that integrates seamlessly into NGS library preparation, chromatin shearing, microbial lysis, and FFPE nucleic acid extraction protocols.

When contamination is removed from the equation, experimental results become what they should always have been: accurate reflections of the biology you are studying, not artifacts of your sample preparation method.

FAQ

Q: In what way is a High-Performance Ultrasonicator for Lab able to prevent cross-contamination?

A: Non-contact focused ultrasound is used. Sealed single use tubes are used for samples, which eliminates probe contact, prevents aerosol, and eliminates shared bath water.

Q: Can the BoFU-1600 be used with the NGS library preparation kits that are already on the market?

A: Absolutely. It can produce DNA fragments in the range of about 150 bp to 5 kb.

Q: To run the BoFU-1600, do I need to use an external computer?

A: Definitely not. This device has a built-in computer and gives you more free space on the bench and has a more direct use case.

Q: Is it possible to run the same run with different sample types?

A: Absolutely. Free processing mode lets you process 1 to 16 samples with different ultrasound parameters for each sample, and is also flexible for different sample types.

Q: What is the process of regulating the temperature of the sonicator?

A: There is a highly sensitive temperature sensor subsystem.