Rapid Clear® Cap
A revolutionary new technology that allows high speed clarification of cellular material
Clarify 3L of Cell Culture In < 30 Minutes
with no centrifugation required
Revolutionary Technology In Downstream Processing
The Thomson Optimum Growth® System of products is expanding into downstream processing with a revolutionary new technology that allows high speed clarification of cellular material. Thomson developed the Rapid Clear® Cap to address the needs of scientists to quickly and efficiently clarify cell culture media directly from the Thomson 5L Optimum Growth® shaker flask without the need for centrifugation.
Features & Benefits
Key Features
Depth filtration with a 0.2μm final pore size eliminates multiple filtration steps and in most cases centrifugation
Significant time savings versus traditional spin down technique
Cell culture clarification of low or high density cultures of CHO stable, CHO transient, HEK293, hybridoma, and other mammalian cell lines
Eliminates transfer steps: The Rapid Clear® Cap screws directly onto the Optimum Growth® Flask
Secondary cap attaches to a new Optimum Growth® Flask or to a storage container with a Luer lock
Key Benefits
Save time, clarify 3L of cell culture in less than 30 minutes - with no centrifugation required!
Reduce consumables used by up to 90%
Walk away convenience and safety - minimize endotoxin exposure
Visit More of the Optimum Growth® System
See Rapid Clear® Cap in Action!
Simply switch out the vented Optimum Growth® Cap for the Rapid Clear®. The only equipment required is a peristaltic pump. In initial testing the units can filter up to 2.5L-3L of high density culture, 6x10^6 -20x10^6 @ >70% viability, in approximately 18 minutes. This technique will transform the time consuming and laborious task of harvesting cells to a rapid walk away procedure.
Win Your Day Back
with Faster Filtration!
Time in Minutes
Clarify your cultures in under 30 minutes
CHO & HEK293 Filtration
Quick cell harvest for mammalian cells
Less Components Needed
= Less Waste
Current Method
- 4 x filter funnels
- 6 x containers
10 items
+ centerfugation needed
New Method
- 1 x Optimum Growth® Flask
- 1 x Rapid Clear® Cap
Only 2 items needed
A Comparison
Rapid Clear® Cap 3000 to GE® Capsule Filters
HPLC was utilized to quantitate intact protein for each of the purified solutions. The Rapid Clear® System yielded a slightly higher quantity of intact IgG, than the GE capsule columns.
HPLC comparison of the purified IgG. The Rapid Clear® Cap 3000 is the red line and GE the blue line
Both GE and Rapid Clear® clarified IgG were run on an SDS Page gel for comparison: Lanes 1 & 4 are molecular weight standard ladder; Lanes 2&3 are non-reduced; lanes 5&6 are reduced.
- 1 ug of post proA protein per lane
- Both Reduced and Non-reduced samples
- 4-12% Bis Tris Gel from Life Tech
- Run in MES buffer @ 200 V for 30 minutes
- Stained with Safe Stain
- Ladder is Precision Plus from Biorad
A= GE filtered material
B= Rapid Clear®filtered material
Rapid Clear® Cap 3000 Protocol
Reduce Operating Costs by Increasing Efficiency & Minimizing the Number of Consumables Used
When producing biologics, cell yield and viability, and effective clarification are critical. Thomson's patented Optimum Growth® Flask design facilitates good mixing and high gas exchange rates to produce high density yields of viable cells. Thomson has used its expertise in filtration to develop the Rapid Clear® Cap 3000 to speed up the clarification process. This innovation reduces operating costs by increasing efficiency and minimizing the number of consumables used.
Quick & Easy to Use
Using the Rapid Clear® Cap 3000 is quick and easy. Once the mammalian or insect cell culture is ready for clarification, simply remove the vent cap and replace it with the Rapid Clear® Cap 3000. The chart provides the approximate time*** to clarify cell cultures based on cell type, viability and volume to be filtered. The higher the viability the faster the filtration.
Grow cells in a 2.8L or 5L Optimum Growth® Flask
Transfer the flask to a hood to replace the Vent Cap with the Rapid Clear® Cap
Replace the Vent Cap on the receiving 1.6L, 2.8L, or 5L Optimum Growth® Flask with the receiving cap that comes with the Rapid Clear® Cap
Remove from hood and place tubing in the pump head, see pump recommendations***
Tilt the flask slightly and run the pump at maximum speed until only a few hundred mL remain
Add 400mL of PBS to the Optimum Growth® Flask to ensure all the culture has been filtered and transferred to the new flask
Duplicate 3L CHO Stable cell cultures were clarified using the Rapid Clear® 3000. This graph compares the volume clarified over 21 minutes.
Volume & time recommendations by cell type
Cell Line Viability | 99%-70% | 69%-50% | 49%-40% | 39%-0% Spin for 7min @ 4000g* | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cell Type | Volume (L) | Time (min) | Volume (L) | Time (min) | Volume (L) | Time (min) | Volume (L) | Time (min) |
CHO Stable without Feed | 3.0 | 18 | 2.5 | 18 | 2.0 | 20 | 3.5**** | 35**** |
CHO Stable, 1 to 2 Feeds | 2.0 | 18 | 2.0 | 18 | 1.5 | 35 | ||
CHO Stable, 2+ Feeds | Spin for 7 min @ 4000g; ≤3L volume **** | |||||||
HEK293 (FreeStyle™ & Expi293) | 3.0 | 18 | 3.0 | 23 | 3.0 | 25 | 3.5**** | 35**** |
CHO Transient | 3.0 | 18 | 2.5 | 18 | 1.5 | 35 | ||
ExpiCHO | 3.0 | 18 | 2.5 | 18 | 1.0 | 18 |
* For low viability cultures, (< 39%), centrifuge for 7 minutes prior to clarifying with the Rapid Clear® Cap.
** This chart was created from results generated in customer labs.
*** All data was generated using a Cole-Parmer pump (pump drive p/n EW-07554-90, pump head p/n EW-77200-62)
**** Cell cultures that received 2+ feeds will require spinning to minimize potential clogging
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