Biotage Extrahera

Significance of Automated Sample Preparation

Automated sample preparation is essential in modern analytical chemistry for improving throughput, reproducibility and safety. Manual workflows are time-consuming, error-prone and require extensive solvent handling. Systems like the Biotage Extrahera address these challenges by streamlining solid-phase and supported liquid extraction workflows under positive pressure, reducing labor and consumable costs while ensuring consistent, high-quality data.

Objectives and Overview

This brochure presents the Biotage Extrahera™, an automated platform designed for processing SPE, SLE, protein precipitation and phospholipid removal workflows. Key aims include demonstrating ease of use, flexibility between columns and well plates, solvent and time savings, and consistent analytical performance across diverse sample types and industry sectors.

Methodology and Used Instrumentation

The Extrahera system employs positive-pressure driven extraction to replace traditional vacuum manifolds. It features:

• Up to five solvent lines with interchangeable 25 mL or 100 mL reservoirs
• Programmable pipetting from 50 µL to 1 mL aliquots with ±1–2% accuracy and 1% CV
• Modular racks supporting 96-well, 48-well or 24-position columns (1–6 mL)
• Onboard solvent tip racks and liquid-handling head with gradient flow control
• Integrated exhaust and enclosed processing area for operator safety

The system database includes common reagents and presets for ISOLUTE® SLE+, EVOLUTE® EXPRESS, ISOLUTE® PLD+ and PPT+ consumables, facilitating rapid method setup in three steps: pretreatment, load and elute.

Main Results and Discussion

Performance highlights:

• Throughput: a full 96-well SPE plate processed in ~30 minutes, including conditioning, equilibration, load, wash and elute steps
• Flexibility: tool-free swapping between plate and column configurations within minutes
• Accuracy: precise solvent delivery across a wide viscosity range (chloroform, dichloromethane, ethers)
• Reproducibility: uniform positive pressure ensures minimal well-to-well variability and eliminates cross-talk
• Space efficiency: compact footprint (610×510×730 mm) optimizes lab bench space

These results demonstrate the system’s ability to deliver reliable, high-sensitivity extracts for downstream LC-MS/MS or other analytical techniques.

Benefits and Practical Applications

The Extrahera platform offers:

• Significant solvent and labor savings through automation
• Enhanced consistency and accuracy of sample processing
• Simple, touch-screen driven method creation and PDF reporting
• Compatibility with a broad range of industries: pharmaceutical, biotech, clinical, forensic, food and environmental testing

Laboratories can standardize workflows for drug metabolites, vitamins, biomarkers and more, reducing turnaround times and instrument downtime.

Future Trends and Possibilities

As sample preparation technology advances, integration with digital lab management systems, artificial intelligence–driven method optimization and fully closed-loop automation will become more prevalent. Miniaturization of workflows and adoption of green solvents will further reduce environmental impact. The Extrahera architecture is poised to adapt to these trends through software updates and modular hardware expansions.

Conclusion

The Biotage Extrahera offers a versatile, robust solution for automated sample preparation. By combining positive-pressure extraction, flexible format handling and intuitive software, the system delivers reproducible, high-throughput workflows while minimizing solvent consumption and labor. It represents a strategic investment for analytical laboratories aiming to increase productivity, data quality and operational efficiency.

Reference

No external literature references were cited in the source document.