Cell suction support system

Abstract

To provide cell suction support systems that can prevent contamination.SOLUTION: A cell suction support system 1 comprises: a culture container 20 for culturing cells; a tip rack 30 for storing a tip container for sucking cells from the culture container 20; a sample rack 40 for storing the cells sucked into the tip container; a tip transport mechanism 100 that holds the tip containers stored in the tip rack 30, moves the tip containers in the X-axis direction, and transports the tip containers in the order of the culture container 20 and the sample rack 40; and a plurality of moving mechanisms (tip rack moving mechanism 110, culture container moving stage 120, sample rack moving mechanism 130) for moving each of the culture container 20, the tip rack 30, and the sample rack 40 at least in the Y-axis direction intersecting with the X-axis direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cell suction support system. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 below discloses a cell suction support system that supports the suction of cells or cellular components. This cell suction support system includes an XY stage, a suction unit, a tip rack, and a specimen rack. A cell culture vessel is placed on the XY stage. The tip rack stores tips for suctioning cells or cellular components. The specimen rack stores tips that have suctioned cells or cellular components.

[0003] The suction unit moves in the X-, Y-, and Z-axis directions using the XYZ stage. When performing cell suction, the suction unit retrieves a tip from the tip rack and attaches it. The suction unit then moves above the cell culture vessel and suctions the cells at a predetermined suction location. At this time, the XY stage moves the cell culture vessel so that the cells to be suctioned are positioned at the suction location. After suctioning the cells, the suction unit moves above the sample rack and releases the tip after suctioning the cells and stores it in the sample rack. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6066110 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In the above-mentioned conventional technology, the suction unit passes above the sample rack to reach above the cell culture vessel, so it was not possible to eliminate the possibility that DNA or other substances outside the sample would fall onto the sample rack after the sample had been obtained and become mixed in. Therefore, the above-mentioned conventional technology had room for improvement in terms of contamination prevention measures.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has an object to provide a cell suction support system that can prevent the occurrence of contamination. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a cell suction support system according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a culture vessel for culturing cells, a tip rack for storing tip containers for aspirating the cells from the culture vessel, a sample rack for storing the cells aspirated into the tip container, a tip transport mechanism that holds the tip containers stored in the tip rack and moves them in a first direction, transporting the tip containers in the order of the culture vessel and the sample rack, and a plurality of transport mechanisms that move each of the culture vessel, the tip rack, and the sample rack in a second direction that intersects at least the first direction.

[0008] Furthermore, in a cell suction support system according to one aspect of the present invention, the system may further include a waste box for disposing of the tip containers, and the tip transport mechanism may transport the tip containers stored in the tip rack in the order of the culture container, the sample rack, and the waste box, and the culture container, the tip rack, the sample rack, and the waste box may be arranged in the order of the tip rack, the culture container, the sample rack, and the waste box in the first direction.

[0009] Furthermore, in a cell suction support system according to one aspect of the present invention, the chip transport mechanism may be movable on two axes, namely, the first direction and a third direction perpendicular to the first direction and the second direction, and the multiple movement mechanisms may be movable on at least one axis in the second direction.

[0010] In the cell suction support system according to an aspect of the present invention, the plurality of movement mechanisms may be installed at a position lower than the tip transport mechanism.

[0011] Furthermore, in a cell suction support system according to one embodiment of the present invention, the sample rack has a plurality of sample containers and is equipped with an operation processing unit that controls the operation of the tip transport mechanism and the plurality of moving mechanisms, and the operation processing unit may move the needle tip of the tip container in the first direction above the sample containers, stop it near the target sample container, and then move the sample rack in the second direction to position the needle tip of the tip container directly above the target sample container.

[0012] Furthermore, in a cell suction support system according to one aspect of the present invention, the first direction may be the front-to-back direction of the housing of the cell suction support system, and the movable range of each of the multiple moving mechanisms may extend to the front side of the housing.

[0013] Furthermore, in a cell suction support system according to one embodiment of the present invention, a work table having a first opening / closing door, a second opening / closing door, and a third opening / closing door is provided on the front side of the housing, and the multiple moving mechanisms may include a tip rack moving mechanism that moves the tip rack to the first opening / closing door, a culture vessel moving stage that moves the culture vessel to the second opening / closing door, and a sample rack moving mechanism that moves the sample rack to the third opening / closing door.

[0014] Furthermore, the cell suction support system according to one aspect of the present invention may further include a shutter mechanism that covers the culture vessel while the tip vessel is moving in the first direction above the culture vessel. [Effects of the Invention]

[0015] According to the above aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a cell suction support system that can prevent the occurrence of contamination. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a cell suction support system according to one embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the internal configuration of a cell suction support system according to one embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a planar layout of the internal configuration of a cell suction support system according to one embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a front view layout of the internal configuration of a cell suction support system according to one embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a contamination avoidance operation of the cell suction support system according to one embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of the contamination avoidance operation of the cell suction support system according to the embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a modified example of the front view layout of the internal configuration of the cell suction support system according to one embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a contamination avoidance operation of the cell suction support system shown in FIG. 7. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0017] Hereinafter, a cell suction support system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. First, an overview of the embodiment of the present invention will be described, and then the details of the embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0018] 〔overview〕 In the cell suction support system described in Patent Document 1, the suction unit passes above the sample rack and reaches above the cell culture vessel. At this time, it is possible that DNA or other substances outside the sample may fall onto the sample rack after the sample has been obtained and become mixed in.

[0019] In this cell suction support system, the tip rack and sample rack are installed in a fixed position. Therefore, in order to pick up a large number of tips with the suction unit, the entire surface of the tip rack and sample rack must be within the movable range of the suction unit. This requires the XYZ stage that moves the suction unit to be large. In addition, the XYZ stage has three movable axes, which are heavy, and the parts that support them also become large. Furthermore, since the XYZ stage is installed at a high position away from the installation position of the optical system that observes the cells, the center of gravity of the device is high and it is prone to vibration. Therefore, measures to prevent vibration when moving the suction unit are also required.

[0020] Furthermore, because the tip rack and sample rack are fixed, the user of the device must install the tip rack and sample rack in a fixed section within the device. To shorten the movement distance of the aspiration unit, the tip rack and sample rack must be installed in the center of the device, but in that case, the user must reach out to the center of the device to install them. On the other hand, if the tip rack and sample rack are installed in front of the device, the range of movement of the aspiration unit must be expanded, which, as mentioned above, causes problems of size and vibration.

[0021] In an embodiment of the present invention, in a cell suction support system, a culture vessel, a tip rack, and a sample rack are each moved in a second direction intersecting the first direction relative to a tip transport mechanism moving in a first direction. This allows the culture vessel, the tip rack, and the sample rack to be moved directly below the tip vessel transported by the tip transport mechanism, thereby avoiding a situation in which contamination due to objects falling from the tip vessel may occur. In addition, by moving the culture vessel, tip rack, and sample rack in the second direction, the movable axis of the tip transport mechanism in the second direction can be reduced, making it possible to make the tip transport mechanism smaller and lighter, and also suppressing vibration. Furthermore, by extending the movable range of the culture vessel, tip rack, and sample rack to the front side of the housing, high accessibility for the user can be ensured.

[0022] [Embodiment] Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the appearance of a cell suction support system 1 according to one embodiment. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the internal configuration of the cell suction support system 1 according to one embodiment. The cell suction support system 1 is a device that supports the suction process of cells or cell components. Hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, the suction of a cell refers to the suction of not only a single cell but also cell components such as intracellular organelles.

[0023] As shown in FIG. 2, the cell suction support system 1 includes a culture vessel 20 for culturing cells, an optical system 200 for observing the cells in the culture vessel 20, and an information processing unit 400 for acquiring information about the cells via the optical system 200 and processing the information.

[0024] The culture vessel 20 is a microplate in which a plurality of wells 21 are formed. Note that the culture vessel 20 is not limited to a microplate, and may be a PCR tube plate, a cell culture dish, a cover glass chamber, a petri dish, or the like. The culture vessel 20 is mounted on a culture vessel moving stage 120. The culture vessel moving stage 120 is an XY stage that moves horizontally in two axes, the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, and aligns the well 21 to be observed with the optical system 200.

[0025] The optical system 200 includes a microscope 210 including an objective lens 211, a bright-field illumination 213, a dichroic mirror 220, a variable magnification lens 221, a bright-field observation camera 222, and a confocal scanner unit 230. The optical system 200 of this embodiment performs confocal two-color fluorescence observation and bright-field observation, but the confocal scanner unit 230 and bright-field observation system may be omitted and the optical system may be configured as a single-color epifluorescence observation, a single-color confocal observation, or a combination of a single-color confocal observation and bright-field observation.

[0026] The confocal scanner unit 230 includes a dichroic mirror 231, a pinhole array disk 232 (Nipkow disk), a microlens array disk 233, a relay lens 234, a dichroic mirror 235, a first bandpass filter 236a, a first lens 237a, a first camera 238a for fluorescence observation, a second bandpass filter 236b, a second lens 237b, a second camera 238b for fluorescence observation, and an excitation light source unit 239.

[0027] In bright-field observation, light is emitted from a bright-field illuminator 213 toward the culture vessel 20. The bright-field signal light passes through a microscope 210, is reflected by a dichroic mirror 220, and is imaged by a bright-field observation camera 222 via a variable magnification lens 221. The bright-field illuminator 213 has a space formed in the center, and is, for example, a torus (donut-shaped).

[0028] In fluorescence observation, an excitation light beam having a specific wavelength is emitted from an excitation light source unit 239 toward the culture vessel 20. A fluorescent signal having a wavelength longer than that of the excitation light beam is emitted from the excited sample, and the fluorescent signal passing through the pinhole array disk 232 becomes a confocal image. The fluorescent signal is reflected by a dichroic mirror 231 and passes through a relay lens 234 to form an image on a first fluorescence observation camera 238a and a second fluorescence observation camera 238b.

[0029] To accommodate the simultaneous use of excitation light sources of multiple wavelengths, a dichroic mirror 235 with the property of spectrally dispersing the fluorescence signal is installed. Furthermore, a first bandpass filter 236a and a second bandpass filter 236b are installed to improve the S / N ratio of the image and to pass only the necessary wavelength band of the fluorescence signal. Since samples emit a variety of fluorescence wavelengths, it is desirable to prepare multiple first bandpass filters 236a and second bandpass filters 236b corresponding to the necessary wavelengths using, for example, filter foil or the like.

[0030] The information processing unit 400 can be configured using an arithmetic processing device such as a PC (Personal Computer), etc. The information processing unit 400 includes an image acquisition unit 410, an image processing unit 420, a display unit 430, an operation reception unit 440, an operation processing unit 450, and a recording unit 460.

[0031] The image acquisition unit 410 acquires images from the bright field observation camera 222, the first fluorescence observation camera 238a, and the second fluorescence observation camera 238b.

[0032] The image processing unit 420 performs various analyses after image processing on the images acquired by the image acquisition unit 410. Specifically, it recognizes cells and organelles by template matching or the like, and calculates feature quantities such as size, brightness, protein amount, and ion amount for each identified cell. It also uses the calculated feature quantities to perform processes such as listing and graphing information about the cells.

[0033] The display unit 430 performs display processing of the images acquired by the image acquisition unit 410 and the analysis results of the image processing unit 420. The operation reception unit 440 receives various operations from the user.

[0034] The operation processing unit 450 controls the operation of the tip transport mechanism 100, the culture vessel moving stage 120, the tip rack moving mechanism 110 (described later), the sample rack moving mechanism 130, etc., and moves the suction unit 101, the culture vessel 20, the tip rack 30, and the sample rack 40. The recording unit 460 records the images acquired by the image acquisition unit 410, the analysis results of the image processing unit 420, etc.

[0035] The cell suction support system 1 includes a tip transport mechanism 100 that holds a tip container 31 and aspirates and transports cells or cell components in a culture container 20. The tip container 31 includes a needle-shaped suction tube and can aspirate, for example, a single cell. Furthermore, by using a nanospray tip with an extremely fine suction tube as the tip container 31, it is also possible to aspirate components of a specific cell.

[0036] The chip transport mechanism 100 is equipped with a suction unit 101 to which a chip container 31 can be attached / detached. This suction unit 101 can suction and discharge cells or cellular components via the attached chip container 31. By moving the suction unit 101, the chip transport mechanism 100 picks up a chip container 31 from the tip rack 30, aspirates specific cells or cellular components from the culture container 20 based on, for example, the analysis results of the image processing unit 420, and discharges the aspirated cells or cellular components into a sample container 41 in the sample rack 40.

[0037] Thereafter, the tip transport mechanism 100 releases the empty tip container 31 into the waste box 50, and the empty suction unit 101 returns to above the tip rack 30, repeating the above operation. Note that, as in Patent Document 1 mentioned above, if the tip container 31 itself that has aspirated the cells or cell components is released into the sample rack 40, the waste box 50 may not be necessary.

[0038] Returning to Figure 1, the cell suction support system 1 includes a housing 10 that houses the various components described above. The housing 10 has a substantially rectangular shape in a plan view. In the following description, an XYZ Cartesian coordinate system is set, and the positional relationship of each component may be described with reference to this XYZ Cartesian coordinate system.

[0039] The X-axis direction is a first horizontal direction extending in the left-right direction of the housing 10 (the longitudinal direction of the housing 10). The Y-axis direction is a second horizontal direction that is perpendicular to the X-axis direction and extends in the front-to-rear direction of the housing 10 (the short-side direction of the housing 10). The Z-axis direction is perpendicular to the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction and is the direction of gravity that extends in the up-down direction of the housing 10.

[0040] The X-axis direction may be referred to as the first direction, the Y-axis direction as the second direction, and the Z-axis direction as the third direction. A workbench 11 is provided in the housing 10. In the X-axis direction, the side on which the workbench 11 is provided is referred to as the front side of the housing 10. A device storage section 12 that is higher than the workbench 11 is provided on the rear side of the housing 10.

[0041] A first opening / closing door 13, a second opening / closing door 14, and a third opening / closing door 15 are provided on the upper surface of the workbench 11. The first opening / closing door 13 and the second opening / closing door 14 are arranged adjacent to each other. The third opening / closing door 15 is arranged at a distance in the X-axis direction from the first opening / closing door 13 and the second opening / closing door 14. A fourth opening / closing door 16 with a handle is provided on the front surface of the device storage section 12 at a position further away from the third opening / closing door 15 in the X-axis direction.

[0042] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing a plan view layout of the internal configuration of the cell suction support system 1 according to one embodiment. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a front view layout of the internal configuration of the cell suction support system 1 according to one embodiment. As shown in Figure 3, in the cell suction support system 1, in the device storage section 12 of the housing 10, the culture container 20, the tip rack 30, the sample rack 40, and the waste box 50 are arranged in the following order in the X-axis direction: tip rack 30, culture container 20, sample rack 40, waste box 50.

[0043] The cell suction support system 1 includes a tip rack moving mechanism 110 that moves the tip rack 30 to the first opening / closing door 13, a culture vessel moving stage 120 that moves the culture vessel 20 to the second opening / closing door 14, and a sample rack moving mechanism 130 that moves the sample rack 40 to the third opening / closing door 15.

[0044] The tip rack moving mechanism 110 is movable in the Y-axis direction and can move the tip rack 30 from the device storage section 12 of the housing 10 to directly below the first opening / closing door 13 of the workbench 11 on the front side of the housing 10. This tip rack moving mechanism 110 includes, for example, a belt conveying mechanism.

[0045] The culture vessel moving stage 120 is movable in the X-axis and Y-axis directions, and can move the culture vessel 20 from the device storage section 12 of the housing 10 to directly below the second opening / closing door 14 of the workbench 11 on the front side of the housing 10. This culture vessel moving stage 120 is equipped with a ball screw mechanism having two movable axes, for example, the X-axis and the Y-axis.

[0046] The sample rack moving mechanism 130 is movable in the Y-axis direction, and can move the tip rack 30 from the device storage section 12 of the housing 10 to directly below the third opening and closing door 15 of the workbench 11 on the front side of the housing 10. This sample rack moving mechanism 130 includes, for example, a belt conveying mechanism.

[0047] The waste box 50 is fixed to the device storage section 12 of the housing 10 and can be accessed by opening the fourth opening / closing door 16.

[0048] 4, the tip transport mechanism 100 can move the suction unit 101 in the X-axis direction and the Z-axis direction, and can transport the tip containers 31 stored in the tip rack 30 in the following order: the culture container 20, the sample rack 40, and the waste box 50. The tip transport mechanism 100 is equipped with a ball screw mechanism having two movable axes, for example, the X-axis and the Z-axis.

[0049] The suction unit 101 is movably guided along a rail 102 extending in the X-axis direction. The rail 102 is supported by a plurality of support columns 103 and is installed above the culture vessel 20 (culture vessel moving stage 120), tip rack 30 (tip rack moving mechanism 110), sample rack 40 (sample rack moving mechanism 130), and waste box 50.

[0050] As shown in Figure 3, the movable range 111s of the tip rack moving mechanism 110 is installed so as to intersect with the movable range 101s of the tip transport mechanism 100 in the X-axis direction at an angle of 90° in a plan view. Therefore, by combining the movable range 111s of the tip rack moving mechanism 110 and the movable range 101s of the tip transport mechanism 100, it is possible to pick up tip containers 31 arranged two-dimensionally on the tip rack 30.

[0051] Furthermore, by extending the movable range 111s of the tip rack moving mechanism 110 to the front side of the housing 10, the user can easily install the tip rack 30 from the first opening and closing door 13. Furthermore, the tip rack moving mechanism 110 has a single movable axis in the Y-axis direction, so it can have a simple structure. Furthermore, by locating the movable axis of the tip rack moving mechanism 110 near the base of the housing 10, the center of gravity of the device can be lowered.

[0052] The culture vessel moving stage 120 has an X-axis direction movable range 121s extending to the second opening / closing door 14 and a Y-axis direction movable range 122s extending to the front side of the housing 10, so that the user can easily place a culture vessel 20 (for example, a 96-well plate) from the second opening / closing door 14. At this time, the cells can be fluorescently stained as needed.

[0053] The movable range 131s of the sample rack moving mechanism 130 is set up so as to intersect with the movable range 101s of the chip transport mechanism 100 in the X-axis direction at 90° in a planar view. Therefore, by combining the movable range 131s of the sample rack moving mechanism 130 with the movable range 101s of the chip transport mechanism 100, cells and intracellular tissues can be ejected into sample containers 41 (e.g., PCR plates or 96-well plates) arranged two-dimensionally on the sample rack 40.

[0054] Furthermore, by extending the movable range 131s of the sample rack moving mechanism 130 to the front side of the housing 10, the user can easily install the sample rack 40 from the third opening and closing door 15. Furthermore, the sample rack moving mechanism 130 has a single movable axis in the Y-axis direction, so it can have a simple structure. Furthermore, by locating the movable axis of the tip rack moving mechanism 110 near the base of the housing 10, the center of gravity of the device can be lowered.

[0055] The movable range 101s of the tip transport mechanism 100 in the X-axis direction extends from the left end of the tip rack 30 to the right end of the waste box 50. Therefore, by combining this with the Y-axis movement of the tip rack moving mechanism 110, the culture vessel moving stage 120, and the sample rack moving mechanism 130, the tip containers 31 can be transported two-dimensionally within the single-axis movable range 101s. The tip transport mechanism 100 of this embodiment does not have a movable axis in the Y-axis direction, so it can have a simple structure. This allows the weight of the tip transport mechanism 100, which is installed far from the base of the housing 10 (high part), to be reduced, lowering the center of gravity of the device and suppressing vibration.

[0056] When holding a tip container 31, the tip transport mechanism 100 moves only in one direction in the X-axis direction, in the order of tip rack 30, culture container 20, sample rack 40, and waste box 50, thereby minimizing the risk of contamination. Furthermore, by moving at least one of the multiple movement mechanisms (tip rack movement mechanism 110, culture container movement stage 120, sample rack movement mechanism 130) as needed and combining this with the contamination avoidance operation described below, the occurrence of contamination can be effectively prevented.

[0057] FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a contamination avoidance operation of the cell suction support system 1 according to one embodiment. In this example, the culture vessels 20, tip racks 30, sample racks 40, and waste boxes 50 are arranged in the following order along the X axis: tip rack 30, culture vessels 20, sample rack 40, waste box 50. The tip transport mechanism 100 carrying the tip container 31 moves only in one direction along the X axis. Note that, as a prerequisite for the following avoidance operation, the operation processing unit 450 stores map data that calculates the location of multiple sample containers 41 from the current position of the sample rack 40. Below, the operation processing unit 450 controls the operation of the tip transport mechanism 100 and the sample rack moving mechanism 130 based on this map data.

[0058] In this pattern, as shown in Fig. 5(a), the tip transport mechanism 100 moves the needle tip of the tip container 31 in the X-axis direction above between the sample containers 41 in the sample rack 40 (a place where contamination does not occur) and stops it near the target sample container 41A. Next, as shown in Fig. 5(b), the sample rack moving mechanism 130 moves the sample rack 40 in the Y-axis direction and positions the needle tip of the tip container 31 directly above the target sample container 41A.

[0059] Next, the tip transport mechanism 100 dispenses cells or cell components from the needle tip of the tip container 31 into the target sample container 41A. Next, the sample rack moving mechanism 130 moves the sample rack 40 in the Y-axis direction, returning it to the state shown in FIG. 5(a), and positions the needle tip of the tip container 31 above between the sample containers 41 of the sample rack 40 (a place where contamination will not occur). Finally, the tip transport mechanism 100 moves the needle tip of the tip container 31 in the X-axis direction above between the sample containers 41 of the sample rack 40, and passes it above the sample rack 40. This avoidance operation can be performed in the same way in the tip rack moving mechanism 110 and the culture vessel moving stage 120. The same applies to the avoidance operation described below.

[0060] 6 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of the contamination avoidance operation of the cell suction support system 1 according to one embodiment. In this example, the culture vessel 20, tip rack 30, sample rack 40, and waste box 50 are arranged in the X-axis direction in the following order: tip rack 30, sample rack 40, culture vessel 20, waste box 50. The tip transport mechanism 100 carrying the tip vessel 31 passes through the sample rack 40, aspirates cells or cell components from the culture vessel 20, and then returns to above the sample rack 40.

[0061] In this pattern, as shown in Fig. 6(a), the tip transport mechanism 100 moves the needle tip of the tip container 31 in the X-axis direction above between the sample containers 41 in the sample rack 40 (a place where contamination does not occur) and stops it near the target sample container 41A. Next, as shown in Fig. 6(b), the sample rack moving mechanism 130 moves the sample rack 40 in the Y-axis direction and positions the needle tip of the tip container 31 directly above the target sample container 41A.

[0062] Next, the tip transport mechanism 100 dispenses cells or cell components from the needle tip of the tip container 31 into the target sample container 41A. Next, the sample rack moving mechanism 130 moves the sample rack 40 in the Y-axis direction, returning it to the state shown in FIG. 6(a), and positions the needle tip of the tip container 31 above between the sample containers 41 of the sample rack 40 (a location where contamination will not occur). Finally, the tip transport mechanism 100 moves the needle tip of the tip container 31 in the X-axis direction above between the sample containers 41 of the sample rack 40, and passes it above the sample rack 40.

[0063] As described above, the cell suction support system 1 according to the present embodiment includes a culture vessel 20 for culturing cells, a tip rack 30 for storing tip vessels 31 into which cells are aspirated from the culture vessel 20, a sample rack 40 for storing cells aspirated into the tip vessels 31, a tip transport mechanism 100 that holds the tip vessels 31 stored in the tip rack 30 and moves them in the X-axis direction, transporting the tip vessels 31 in the order of the culture vessel 20 and the sample rack 40, and multiple transport mechanisms (a tip rack transport mechanism 110, a culture vessel transport stage 120, and a sample rack transport mechanism 130) that move each of the culture vessel 20, tip rack 30, and sample rack 40 in at least the Y-axis direction intersecting with the X-axis direction. This configuration allows the culture vessel 20, tip rack 30, and sample rack 40 to be moved directly below the tip vessel 31 transported by the tip transport mechanism 100, thereby avoiding a situation in which contamination due to objects falling from the tip vessel 31 may occur.

[0064] 3, the cell suction support system 1 according to this embodiment further includes a waste box 50 for disposing of tip containers 31, and the tip transport mechanism 100 transports the tip containers 31 stored in the tip rack 30 in the following order: culture container 20, sample rack 40, waste box 50, and the culture containers 20, tip rack 30, sample rack 40, and waste box 50 are arranged in the following order in the X-axis direction: tip rack 30, culture container 20, sample rack 40, waste box 50. With this configuration, the tip transport mechanism 100 carrying the tip container 31 can pick up the tip container 31, aspirate and discharge cells or cellular components, and release the tip container 31, all while moving in one direction in the X-axis direction. Therefore, when the tip transport mechanism 100 returns to above the tip rack 30, it is empty, which reliably prevents contamination from occurring.

[0065] Furthermore, in the cell suction support system 1 according to this embodiment, the chip transport mechanism 100 is movable along two axes, the X-axis direction and a third direction perpendicular to the X-axis and Y-axis directions, and the multiple transport mechanisms are movable along at least one axis, the Y-axis direction. With this configuration, the chip transport mechanism 100 does not require a movable axis in the Y-axis direction, allowing for a simple structure. This reduces the weight of the chip transport mechanism 100, which is installed at a part far from the base of the housing 10 (a high part), thereby lowering the center of gravity of the device and suppressing vibration.

[0066] Furthermore, in the cell suction support system 1 according to this embodiment, the multiple movement mechanisms are installed at a position lower than the tip transport mechanism 100. According to this configuration, by arranging the movable axes of the multiple movement mechanisms at a position lower than the tip transport mechanism 100, the center of gravity of the device can be lowered.

[0067] Furthermore, in the cell suction support system 1 according to this embodiment, at least one of the multiple movement mechanisms is equipped with a ball screw movement mechanism. This configuration can meet the required specifications of the culture vessel movement stage 120 and the like, which require high movement accuracy. On the other hand, for the tip rack movement mechanism 110 and the sample rack movement mechanism 130, which do not require high-accuracy movement like the culture vessel movement stage 120, a belt conveyance mechanism that is simpler and lighter than a ball screw movement mechanism can be used to reduce the weight of the entire device.

[0068] Furthermore, in the cell suction support system 1 according to this embodiment, the sample rack 40 has a plurality of sample containers 41 and is equipped with an operation processing unit 450 that controls the operation of the tip transport mechanism 100 and the plurality of moving mechanisms, and the operation processing unit 450 moves the needle tip of the tip container 31 in the X-axis direction above between the sample containers 41, stops it near the target sample container 41A, and then moves the sample rack 40 in the Y-axis direction to position the needle tip of the tip container 31 directly above the target sample container 41A. This configuration makes it possible to minimize the situation where an object falling from the tip container 31 falls into a sample container 41 other than the target sample container 41A.

[0069] Furthermore, in the cell suction support system 1 according to this embodiment, the X-axis direction is the front-to-rear direction of the housing 10 of the cell suction support system 1, and the ranges of movement (111s, 121s, 131s) of each of the multiple movement mechanisms extend to the front side of the housing 10. This configuration allows the user to place the tip rack 30, culture container 20, and sample rack 40 on the front side of the housing 10 without having to reach for the center of the housing 10, thereby improving workability.

[0070] Furthermore, in the cell suction support system 1 according to this embodiment, a work table 11 equipped with a first opening / closing door 13, a second opening / closing door 14, and a third opening / closing door 15 is provided on the front side of the housing 10, and the multiple movement mechanisms include a tip rack movement mechanism 110 that moves the tip rack 30 to the first opening / closing door 13, a culture vessel movement stage 120 that moves the culture vessel 20 to the second opening / closing door 14, and a sample rack movement mechanism 130 that moves the sample rack 40 to the third opening / closing door 15. With this configuration, the first opening / closing door 13, the second opening / closing door 14, and the third opening / closing door 15 of the work table 11 provided on the front side of the housing 10 can be opened to place the tip rack 30, the culture vessel 20, and the sample rack 40 from above, further improving operability.

[0071] Furthermore, the cell suction support system 1 can employ configurations such as those shown in FIGS.

[0072] Fig. 7 is a diagram showing a modified example of the front view layout of the internal configuration of the cell suction support system 1 according to one embodiment. Fig. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the contamination avoidance operation of the cell suction support system 1 shown in Fig. 7. The cell suction support system 1 shown in Fig. 7 is provided with a shutter mechanism 140 that covers the sample rack 40 while the tip container 31 moves in the X-axis direction on the sample rack 40. The shutter mechanism 140 moves in the Y-axis direction as shown in Fig. 8.

[0073] In this case, as shown in Fig. 8(a), the tip transport mechanism 100 moves and stops the needle tip of the tip container 31 above the target sample container 41A in the sample rack 40 while the sample rack 40 is covered by the shutter mechanism 140. Next, as shown in Fig. 8(b), the shutter mechanism 140 moves in the Y-axis direction to expose the target sample container 41A.

[0074] Next, the chip transport mechanism 100 ejects cells or cell components from the needle tip of the chip container 31 into the target sample container 41A. Next, the shutter mechanism 140 moves in the Y-axis direction, returning to the state shown in FIG. 8(a), and covers the sample rack 40. Finally, the chip transport mechanism 100 moves the needle tip of the chip container 31 in the X-axis direction above the shutter mechanism 140, and passes it above the sample rack 40. According to the above configuration, the shutter mechanism 140 moves instead of the sample rack 40, which has the advantage of being light in operation and not shaking the cells or cell components stored in the sample rack 40.

[0075] While the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the drawings, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. The shapes and combinations of the components shown in the above-described embodiments are merely examples, and various modifications can be made based on design requirements, etc., without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0076] For example, in the above embodiment, the second direction is the Y-axis direction perpendicular to the X-axis direction, but the second direction is not limited to the Y-axis direction and may be, for example, a direction that intersects with the X-axis direction at an acute or obtuse angle.

[0077] Furthermore, for example, in the above embodiment, the chip transport mechanism 100 and the culture vessel moving stage 120 are illustrated as being equipped with ball screw moving mechanisms, but the chip rack moving mechanism 110 and the sample rack moving mechanism 130 may also be equipped with ball screw moving mechanisms. [Explanation of symbols]

[0078] 1...cell suction support system 1...housing, 11...workbench, 13...first opening / closing door, 14...second opening / closing door, 15...third opening / closing door, 20...culture vessel, 30...tip rack, 31...tip vessel, 40...sample rack, 50...disposal box, 100...tip transport mechanism, 110...tip rack moving mechanism, 111s...moving range, 120...culture vessel moving stage, 121s...moving range, 130...sample rack moving mechanism, 131s...moving range, 140...shutter mechanism

Claims

1. a culture vessel for culturing cells; a tip rack for storing tip containers for aspirating the cells from the culture container; a sample rack for storing the cells aspirated into the tip container; a tip transport mechanism that holds the tip container stored in the tip rack and moves in a first direction to transport the tip container to the culture container and then to the sample rack; a plurality of movement mechanisms that move the incubation vessel, the tip rack, and the sample rack in at least a second direction that intersects with the first direction; an operation processing unit that controls the operations of the chip transport mechanism and the plurality of moving mechanisms; Equipped with The sample rack has a plurality of sample containers; The operation processing unit moves the needle tip of the tip container in the first direction above the space between the sample containers. Cell suction support system.

2. Further provided is a waste box for disposing of the tip container, the tip transport mechanism transports the tip containers stored in the tip rack to the culture container, the sample rack, and the waste box in this order; The cell suction assistance system according to claim 1 , wherein the culture vessel, the tip rack, the sample rack, and the waste box are arranged in the following order in the first direction: tip rack, culture vessel, sample rack, waste box.

3. the chip transport mechanism is movable along two axes, that is, the first direction and a third direction perpendicular to the first direction and the second direction; The cell suction support system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the plurality of movement mechanisms are movable on at least one axis in the second direction.

4. The cell suction support system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the plurality of moving mechanisms are installed at a position lower than the tip transport mechanism.

5. A cell suction support system as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the operation processing unit moves the needle tip of the chip container in the first direction above the sample containers, stops it near the target sample container, and then moves the sample rack in the second direction to position the needle tip of the chip container directly above the target sample container.

6. the second direction is a front-to-rear direction of a housing of the cell suction assistance system, The cell suction support system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the movable range of each of the plurality of movement mechanisms extends to the front side of the housing.

7. a work table provided with a first opening / closing door, a second opening / closing door, and a third opening / closing door is provided on the front side of the housing; The plurality of movement mechanisms include: a tip rack moving mechanism that moves the tip rack to the first opening and closing door; a culture vessel moving stage that moves the culture vessel to the second opening / closing door; The cell suction assistance system according to claim 6 , further comprising: a sample rack moving mechanism that moves the sample rack to the third opening / closing door.

8. The cell suction assistance system according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a shutter mechanism that covers the sample rack while the tip container is moving in the first direction over the sample rack.

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