High throughput system .

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Background: Researchers at Stanford University have developed a novel system for high throughput growth and quantitative analysis of lipid content in bacteria. Valuable lipid inclusions include polymers such as polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB), used for bioplastic production, as well as long chain fatty acids used for fuel production. Use of this approach results in order of magnitude reductions in handling time per replicate while producing reliable data on biomass, growth rates, and lipid content. Currently, individual strains and conditions must be grown and analyzed individually, limiting the number of replicates per experiment. However, this novel system allows for parallel growth and analysis of hundreds of replicate fermentations. Applications: High throughput screening of cultures and enrichments for high bioplastic or biodiesel production Media optimization for high yields and high growth rates Isolation of high performance strains Isolation of methanotrophs without use of agar Advantages: Order of magnitude reduction in handling time per replicate Highly tunable growth conditions replicate larger scale fermentations Adaptable to a wide variety of common analyses