Yeast suspensions were dried and analyzed via FT-IR using an automated transmission sampling accessory. Up to six-fold sampling capacity increase may be realized through automation.

FT-IR spectroscopy has been shown to be an effective tool to classify bacteria, yeast, and fungi at the strain, species, and genus level. Compared to traditional microbiological techniques, IR sampling is less time-consuming. Microbiological applications for FT-IR analysis include a rapid method of identification and screening, quality control for food and pharmaceutical fields, and assessment of growth environment on cell and cell byproduct physiology.

An IR plate-reader for biological samples is desirable for laboratories confronted with high-throughput demands, and the need to save resources through automation. This application note illustrates the use of an in-compartment XY plate reader to analyze yeast and discusses the resource savings involved through accessory automation.

Experimental Conditions

Yeast suspensions (30 µL) were pipetted onto a sample well of a 96-well reusable Si plate, and dried at 45 °C for 1 h for subsequent infrared transmission measurements. The 96-well Si plate was loaded into the PIKE Technologies XY Autosampler Accessory, an FT-IR sample compartment automated transmission/diffuse reflection accessory. The spectral range spanned from 4000 to 600 cm^-1 using a resolution of 4 cm^-1 . Data collection time was 1 min. For transmission measurements the accessory's integrated DTGS detector is used to maximize the signal-to-noise ratio. Automated plate movement to each sample position is controlled by PIKE AutoPRO software, which also triggers data collection via the FT-IR spectrometer.