PLANT AND SEED GENOMICS D E E P W E L L M I C R O P L AT E S As the need to determine the genomic profiles of food and commercial crops expands, the requirement for reliable methods of extracting the plant DNA increases. Standard methods such as bead-beating or grinding mills have traditionally been used. When conducted in polypropylene microplates the extreme forces applied by commercially-available bead-beating machines can cause damage to the plates leading to cracking, leaking and ultimately, cross-contamination. Good quality injection moulded polypropylene microplates for science should be free of extractable compounds and additives. Such additives, designed to strengthen household products, are definitely not suitable for scientific applications and therefore Porvair Sciences have taken a different approach.

With more than thirty years' experience in microplate manufacture, Porvair Sciences has applied modern design concepts and mould analysis to this problem to create a solid, stable and above all, strong, microplate that can withstand the applied forces in bead-beaters whilst maintaining a standard ANSI/SLAS footprint and key dimensions. By adding reinforced walls to the bottom of the well and backing these with supporting ribs on the underside of the plate, Porvair Sciences has produced a 2 ml square well block that at last can be used safely and with confidence for plant DNA extraction. The wells...