A high-throughput screening device for antibacterial activity of Bacillus subtilis

Abstract

This invention discloses a high-throughput screening device for the antibacterial activity of Bacillus subtilis, belonging to the field of high-throughput screening technology. The device includes a screening chamber, within which a sample loading robotic arm, an environmental control unit, an image acquisition and analysis unit, and a petri dish rack are installed. The petri dish rack is driven to rotate by a drive motor at its lower end. This invention's high-throughput screening device for the antibacterial activity of Bacillus subtilis employs a rotating, multi-layered fan-shaped petri dish rack, integrating a large number of culture units within a compact space, significantly improving the sample processing capacity for a single experiment and truly achieving high-throughput screening. Through the coordinated work of the pushing component and the robotic arm, automatic ejection, sample loading, and resetting of the culture plates are achieved. The entire sample loading process is completed within a sealed chamber, eliminating the need for operator intervention by opening the equipment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of high-throughput screening technology, and more specifically, to a high-throughput screening device for the antibacterial activity of Bacillus subtilis. Background Technology

[0002] Bacillus has broad application prospects in agriculture, medicine, and the food industry due to its ability to produce a variety of antibacterial substances. Screening for its antibacterial activity is a crucial step in discovering new strains or active compounds. Traditional screening methods, such as the Oxford cup method and agar diffusion method, mainly rely on manual operation, resulting in low throughput, poor reproducibility, high labor intensity, and susceptibility to cross-contamination. Although some automated equipment has emerged in existing technologies, the placement and handling of culture dishes are often cumbersome, making it difficult to achieve truly high-throughput, standardized, and continuous screening. In particular, before inoculation and sample addition, it is usually necessary to remove the culture dishes one by one or open the equipment door, which not only disrupts the stability of the culture environment but also greatly limits the screening efficiency. Therefore, there is an urgent need for an integrated, fully automated, high-throughput screening device that can achieve modular and efficient transfer of culture dishes to overcome the above-mentioned technical bottlenecks. Utility Model Content

[0003] The purpose of this invention is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and provide a high-throughput screening device for the antibacterial activity of Bacillus subtilis to solve the above-mentioned shortcomings.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution provided by this utility model is as follows:

[0005] A high-throughput screening device for Bacillus antibacterial activity includes a screening chamber, in which a sample loading robotic arm, an environmental control unit, an image acquisition and analysis unit, and a petri dish rack are arranged. The petri dish rack is driven to rotate by a drive motor at its lower end. The structure of the petri dish rack includes a lower base plate, a supporting base plate, and an upper top plate arranged sequentially from bottom to top. The upper surfaces of the lower base plate and the supporting base plate are divided into multiple annularly distributed fan-shaped grooves by a support plate, and a petri dish is arranged in the fan-shaped groove.

[0006] Preferably, the fan-shaped groove is provided with a culture plate in a slidable manner, a shallow dish for holding culture medium is placed on the culture plate, a groove is provided at the bottom of the fan-shaped groove, a slider is provided at the bottom of the culture plate to cooperate with the groove, and a return spring is provided in the groove.

[0007] Preferably, the shallow dish is placed inside the culture dish, and the shallow dish is made of disposable plastic or a polymer material that can be autoclaved.

[0008] Preferably, a raised plate is provided around the upper surface of the culture plate. When the culture plate is located in the fan-shaped groove, the raised plate contacts the supporting bottom plate or the upper top plate to form a seal.

[0009] Preferably, the support base plate has a through hole in the center, and a pushing component is provided in the screening chamber above the culture dish placement rack. The pushing component includes a first telescopic rod and a second telescopic rod. The first telescopic rod is used to control the height adjustment of the second telescopic rod, and the output end of the second telescopic rod is provided with a push block for pushing the specified culture plate from the fan-shaped groove to the sample loading station.

[0010] Preferably, the end of the sample dispensing robotic arm is connected to a multi-channel sample dispensing head, and a sample tray for placing samples is also provided in the screening chamber. The sample dispensing robotic arm is located on one side of the screening chamber and is used to perform inoculation or sample dispensing operations on the shallow tray located at the sample dispensing station.

[0011] Compared with the prior art, the technical solution provided by this utility model has the following advantages:

[0012] This invention relates to a high-throughput screening device for Bacillus antibacterial activity. It employs a rotating, multi-layered fan-shaped culture dish rack, integrating numerous culture units within a compact space, significantly improving sample processing capacity for a single experiment and truly achieving high-throughput screening. Through the coordinated operation of the pushing component and the robotic arm, the automatic ejection, sample addition, and repositioning of the culture plates are achieved. The entire sample addition process is completed within a sealed chamber, eliminating the need for operator intervention by opening the equipment. This ensures stable environmental parameters and completely avoids cross-contamination of microorganisms introduced by human operation. A drive motor rotates the rack, precisely positioning the target culture plate at the pushing station. The pushing component linearly pushes it to the sample addition station. After the robotic arm completes sample addition, a repositioning spring automatically retracts the culture plate, automating the flow of culture dishes. The use of disposable or sterilizable shallow dishes as culture containers eliminates the tedious work of cleaning and sterilizing glassware, reducing consumable costs and labor time. The modular design makes the removal, placement, and replacement of culture plates extremely convenient. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Figure 1 This is a structural diagram of the internal structure of the screening chamber of this utility model;

[0014] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the pushing component of this utility model pushing the culture plate;

[0015] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram showing the connection between the culture plate and the bottom plate of this utility model.

[0016] In the diagram: 1. Screening chamber; 11. Sample loading robotic arm; 12. Environmental control unit; 13. Image acquisition and analysis unit; 14. Pushing component; 141. First telescopic rod; 142. Second telescopic rod; 15. Sample tray; 2. Petri dish rack; 21. Support platform; 22. Drive motor; 23. Lower base plate; 231. Rotating shaft; 232. Support plate; 233. Sector groove; 2331. Slide groove; 2332. Return spring; 234. Culture plate; 2341. Culture tray; 2342. Slider; 2343. Heightening plate; 2344. Shallow tray; 24. Support base plate; 241. Through hole; 25. Upper top plate. Detailed Implementation

[0017] The technical solutions of the present utility model will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings of the embodiments. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present utility model, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present utility model, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the protection scope of the present utility model.

[0018] To further understand the content of this utility model, a detailed description of this utility model will be provided in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0019] Combination Figures 1-3 This invention discloses a high-throughput screening device for Bacillus antibacterial activity, comprising a screening chamber 1, wherein a sample loading robotic arm 11, an environmental control unit 12, and an image acquisition and analysis unit 13 are disposed within the screening chamber 1. The sample loading robotic arm 11 is located on one side of the screening chamber 1, and a petri dish rack 2 is disposed on the other side of the screening chamber 1. The environmental control unit 12 and the image acquisition and analysis unit 13 are both located on the top of the screening chamber 1, wherein the image acquisition and analysis unit 13 is located between the sample loading robotic arm 11 and the petri dish rack 2.

[0020] Specifically, the lower end of the petri dish rack 2 is provided with a support platform 21, and a drive motor 22 for driving the petri dish rack 2 to rotate is provided below the support platform 21. The petri dish rack 2 includes a lower base plate 23, a support base plate 24 and an upper top plate 25 arranged sequentially from bottom to top. The lower surface of the lower base plate 23 is provided with a rotating shaft 231 connected to the drive motor 22. Support plates 232 are provided at equal distances on the upper surfaces of the lower base plate 23 and the support base plate 24. The upper ends of the support plates 232 are fixedly connected to the support base plate 24 or the upper top plate 25. Under the action of the support plates 232, the surfaces of the lower base plate 23 and the support base plate 24 are divided into annularly distributed fan-shaped grooves 233, and the petri dish rack 234 is provided in the fan-shaped grooves 233.

[0021] More specifically, the surface of the culture plate 234 is provided with a culture tray 2341, and a shallow tray 2344 is placed inside the culture tray 2341. The shallow tray 2344 is detachably installed on the culture tray 2341. The shallow tray 2344 is made of disposable plastic or a polymer material that can be autoclaved. Solid culture medium can be pre-filled in the shallow tray 2344. Using low-cost disposable consumables avoids cross-contamination and eliminates the trouble of cleaning. The lower surface of the culture plate 234 is provided with a slider 2342, and the bottom of the fan-shaped groove 233 is provided with a sliding groove 2331 that matches the slider 2342. Through the cooperation of the slider 2342 and the sliding groove 2331, the culture plate 234 can be restricted to move linearly along the sliding groove 2331. A return spring 2332 is provided in the sliding groove 2331, and the return spring 2332 pushes the slider 2342 to return to its original position.

[0022] It should be noted that a raised plate 2343 is provided around the upper surface of the culture plate 234. The raised plate 2343 contacts the supporting base plate 24 or the upper top plate 25 to provide a sealing effect. A through hole 241 is provided in the middle of the supporting base plate 24. A pushing component 14 is provided in the screening chamber 1 located above the petri dish placement rack 2. The pushing component 14 includes a vertically arranged first telescopic rod 141 and a horizontally arranged second telescopic rod 142. The output end of the first telescopic rod 141 is connected to the outer wall of the second telescopic rod 142. The first telescopic rod 141 controls the second telescopic rod 142 to adjust its height. The output end of the second telescopic rod 142 is connected to a push block. The second telescopic rod 142 controls the horizontal movement of the push block to push out the raised plate 2343 of the culture plate 234. After the culture plate 234 is removed from the fan-shaped groove 233, the sample loading robot arm 11 inoculates the shallow dish 2344 on the culture plate 234 with indicator bacterial solution or Bacillus fermentation broth to be tested.

[0023] In addition, in this embodiment, a sample tray 15 is provided in the screening chamber 1. The sample tray 15 has multiple rows of wells for placing sample tubes or enzyme-labeled plates. The end of the sample dispensing robotic arm 11 is connected to a dispensing head. The dispensing head can pick up and dispense the sample or standard to be tested onto the agar surface of the standard culture dish. The dispensing head is a multi-channel dispensing head, which can simultaneously dispense samples onto the same shallow dish 2344 or multiple shallow dishes 2344.

[0024] The environmental control unit 12 includes an ultraviolet germicidal lamp, a temperature controller, a humidity controller, and a gas circulator, which are used to maintain a constant temperature, humidity, and gas environment in the screening chamber 1. The ultraviolet germicidal lamp is installed on the inner wall of the screening chamber 1 for chamber disinfection before and after the experiment. The petri dish rack 2 is made of transparent material. The image acquisition and analysis unit 13 includes a high-definition camera and a control terminal, which can capture images of all petri dishes in a layer at one time and transmit them to the control terminal for analysis. For parts that cannot be clearly captured, the culture plate 234 can be pushed out by the push component 14 for imaging.

[0025] Working process: Disposable shallow trays 2344 pre-filled with solid culture medium are placed in the culture trays 2341 of each culture plate 234. The equipment is turned off, and the ultraviolet germicidal lamp in the environmental control unit 12 is turned on to disinfect the screening chamber 1. After disinfection, the environmental control unit 12 maintains the chamber in a sterile state, the drive motor 22 is started, and the culture plate placement rack 2 is rotated to rotate the first culture plate 234 to be processed to the pushing position. The first telescopic rod 141 of the pushing component 14 is lowered to a suitable height, and the second telescopic rod 142 is extended horizontally, pushing the culture plate 234 to slide out of the fan-shaped groove 233 along the slide 2331 to the sample loading position. The sample loading robotic arm 11 moves to the sample tray 15 to pick up the bacterial solution mixed with indicator bacteria, and then accurately spots the sample onto the culture medium surface of the shallow tray 2344. After completion, the robotic arm is retracted, the pushing component 14 is retracted, and the return spring 2332 pulls the culture plate 234 back to its original position in the fan-shaped groove 233. The culture plate placement rack 2 rotates, and the above process is repeated until completion. Inoculation of all shallow dishes 2344 with indicator bacteria; after inoculation, as needed, drive motor 22 rotates the culture dish rack 2 again, push component 14 and sample loading robotic arm 11 work together to push out each culture plate 234 in sequence, and sample loading robotic arm 11 picks up the Bacillus fermentation broth or sample to be tested and spots it onto the designated position of the shallow dish 2344; after all sample loading operations are completed, environmental control unit 12 precisely controls the temperature and humidity of the chamber and starts constant temperature culture; after culture is completed, drive motor 22 can slowly rotate culture dish rack 2, and the high-definition camera of image acquisition and analysis unit 13 can automatically focus and acquire images of each shallow dish 2344 passing below, or keep all culture plates 2344 stationary for shooting. The acquired images are transmitted to the control terminal, the built-in software automatically identifies and measures the diameter of the inhibition zone, calculates the antibacterial activity, and generates an experimental report. After the experiment, the device can be opened, and the used shallow dishes 2344 can be directly taken out for harmless treatment in preparation for the next experiment.

[0026] It should be noted that, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

[0027] Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the present invention.

Claims

1. A high-throughput screening device for Bacillus antibacterial activity, comprising a screening chamber (1), characterized in that, The screening chamber (1) is equipped with a sample loading robotic arm (11), an environmental control unit (12), an image acquisition and analysis unit (13), and a petri dish rack (2). The petri dish rack (2) is driven to rotate by a drive motor (22) at the lower end. The structure of the petri dish rack (2) includes a lower base plate (23), a support base plate (24), and an upper top plate (25) arranged sequentially from bottom to top. The upper surfaces of the lower base plate (23) and the support base plate (24) are divided into multiple annularly distributed fan-shaped grooves (233) by a support plate (232). A culture plate (234) is arranged in the fan-shaped groove (233).

2. The high-throughput screening device for Bacillus antibacterial activity according to claim 1, characterized in that, The fan-shaped groove (233) is slidably provided with a culture plate (234), and a shallow dish (2344) for holding culture medium is placed on the culture plate (234). The bottom of the fan-shaped groove (233) is provided with a sliding groove (2331), and the bottom of the culture plate (234) is provided with a slider (2342) that cooperates with the sliding groove (2331). A return spring (2332) is provided in the sliding groove (2331).

3. The high-throughput screening device for Bacillus antibacterial activity according to claim 2, characterized in that, The shallow dish (2344) is placed inside the culture dish (2341), and the shallow dish (2344) is made of disposable plastic or a polymer material that can be autoclaved.

4. The high-throughput screening device for Bacillus antibacterial activity according to claim 3, characterized in that, A raised plate (2343) is provided around the upper surface of the culture plate (234).

5. The high-throughput screening device for Bacillus antibacterial activity according to claim 1, characterized in that, The support base plate (24) has a through hole (241) in the center. A push assembly (14) is provided in the screening chamber (1) above the culture dish placement rack (2). The push assembly (14) includes a first telescopic rod (141) and a second telescopic rod (142). The first telescopic rod (141) is used to control the height adjustment of the second telescopic rod (142). The output end of the second telescopic rod (142) is provided with a push block, which is used to push the specified culture plate (234) from the fan-shaped groove (233) to the sample loading station.

6. The high-throughput screening device for Bacillus antibacterial activity according to claim 1, characterized in that, The end of the sample dispensing robotic arm (11) is connected to a multi-channel sample dispensing head, and a sample tray (15) for placing samples is also provided in the screening chamber (1).

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