Coventry-based Cryologyx Ltd has won the Society of Lab Automation (SLAS) Europe Product Award 2024 for product developments with transformational potential for the sector.
Two companies were selected by the SLAS Europe 2024 jury from 13 applicants and six finalists as winners of this year’s Product Award in Barcelona: Switzerland’s SEED Biosciences SA and its product Dispen3D and the UK’s Cyrologyx Ltd with its product PlateReady.
According to SLAS CEO Vicki Loise at the award ceremony, the market opportunity, potential impact on the automation sector, originality of the product and the proof of concept of the products, which have been on the market for no more than a year, were assessed.
CryoLogix PlateReady uses cryoprotectants called Cryoshield to revolutionise research with cryopreserved cells. Today, cells are stored frozen in suspension and must be cultured for days or weeks before they can be used in an experiment. As a result, a cell biologist has to devote significant time to cell preparation and the routine maintenance of cell lines rather than other valuable operations.
CryoLogix’s PlateReady™ featuring cryopreserved cell cultures is designed to simplify the freeze–thaw process while maintaining high cell viability and functionality post-thaw. PlateReady incorporates cryopreserved cells using Cryoshield™ that enable very high cell recoveries and cryopreservation of cells in non-standard formats. This approach ensures the cryopreserved cells work just as well as freshly cultured ones in terms of survival, function and response to drugs within 24 hours post-thaw.
Dr Tom Congdon, co-founder and CEO of CryoLogyx, said: “Our PlateReady products enable a major shift in how cell biology and cell-based assays are approached in the lab.”
The fifth annual European conference of the Society of Lab Automation attracted several hundreds of Europe’s most prominent automation specialists, globally active exhibitors and small innovative companies. One of SLAS ultimate goals is to improve networking and building a strong base for collaboration across sectors integrating several disciplines important to push life sciences automation.