BioSpec Products - Mini-Beadbeater-16

Mini-Beadbeater-16

The Mini-Beadbeater-16 is a high-energy cell disrupter designed to handle four to sixteen samples at a time.

Cat. No. 607, Mini-BeadBeater-16, 115 volt, with safety shield (not shown in photo)
Cat. No. 607EUR, Mini-Beadbeater-16, 220-240 volt

Beads and vials must be purchased separately. For selecting Beads and Vials see the links in Browse box in the left margin.

NOTE for European buyers! The Mini-Beadbeater-16 is not CE certified at this time (May 2010). Certification is in progress.

Product Description

The Mini-BeadBeater-16 disrupts microbial cells and plant and animal tissue by violently agitating four to sixteen 2 ml screw-cap microvials containing small ceramic or steel beads and disruption buffer. Even resistant samples like yeast, spores or fibrous tissue are completely homogenized around 3 minutes in 0.1 to 1 ml of extraction medium. The non-foaming, aerosol-free method preserves enzymes and organelles. In the presence of nucleic acid extraction media such as phenol, Gu-SCN or a commercial kit solution, DNA or RNA is recovered in the highest possible yield. The method is ideal for PAGE, PCR applications and diagnostics using antibody or oligonucleotide probes. Because the beads and vials are disposable, there is Absolutely Zero cross-contamination between samples - essential for PCR techniques.
Protocols using different models of the MBB are transferable with minimal modification.

Selected Applications Using the Mini-Beadbeater

Advice on Choosing a Commercial High Through-put Cell Disrupter - this information is helpful when selecting a multi-sample, beadbeater-type cell disrupter.

Specifications

Power: 115 volts, 60 Hz, 7.5 amps or 230 volts, 50Hz, 3.7 amps.
10' D X 16' W X 12' H, 40 lbs.
Shaking pattern: Uses proven, more efficient near horizontal vial orientation with shaking motion top-to-bottom (not side-to-side or vortex-like) shaking patterns.
Capacity: four to sixteen screw-cap microvials (0.5, 1.5 and 2.0 ml) each handling 1 to 400 mg (wet weight) bio-sample.
Shaking speed*: 3450 oscillations/min.
Throw or vial displacement*: 0.75 inches.
Timer: 0-5 minute digital, with auto reset.
Removable vial-holding cassette.
Recycle delay time: No imposed motor cool-down-time between each sample run.
The Mini-BeadBeater-16 uses standard screw-cap plastic microvials. Stainless steel microvials are available when dry- or cryo-milling with steel beads (see 'Vials' link on left margin). With an accessory vial-holding ring, snap-top microvials can also be used*. Also, up to eight 7 ml vials can be processed with an accessory holding ring. For these accessories see the 'Parts and Accessories' on the top blue banner above. *Caution: When working with potentially biohazardous samples snap-top microtubes are not recommended. They can release aerosols during shaking.

Other Information

Comments from a Researcher at Lawrence Livermore National Lab*:
'We have now tested the MiniBeadBeater with two different sets of samples, with more than 100 samples processed. It seems to perform comparably with the single channel units we have from BioSpec, which is a very pleasant surprise. We are able to isolate DNA from purified Bacillus spores, which have proved to be too difficult for all of the other commercially available, multi-channel instruments we have tried.'
*Not to be taken as an endorsement by LLNL or its affiliates.

.....from Ontario Veterinary College:
'We received your MiniBeadbeater and put it to use immediately. It is just as advertised, easy to use, and our tissue homogenization and resultant RNA isolation has improved drastically!!

.....from Steve @emu.edu:
I'm shopping around for a bead-beater kind of homogenizer, and the Mini-Beadbeater-16 looks great, price-wise anyway, compared to the Fastprep and other similar products.
How does it compare to the other $7000-$10000 bead beaters on the market and why is it so much cheaper?

Answer: For over 30 years our philosophy has been to offer novel scientific equipment at reasonable prices. BioSpec accomplishes this in two ways:

1. We sometimes design and build equipment around preexisting mass-marketed tools and appliances (example: our 'TissueTearor' homogenizer uses a Dremel-tool motor drive). Savings from this stategy are passed on to the customer.

2. We advertise modestly. For product promotion we mostly rely on 'word-of-mouth' and scientific literature references. Print and internet advertising, distributor discounts, representive commissions, mock customer discounts, trade shows and other forms of marketing are expensive. In many cases, over 50% of the list price of a lab tool is designed to cover these costs!