COVID-19 Has Impacted All of Us
We are your partner for all your filtration needs for COVID research.
Our Laboratory products are helping in the fight against the Coronavirus (COVID-19) by assisting researchers around the globe in COVID-19 related workflows, from enabling detection of the virus to development of a vaccine. Our filtration products ensure reliable and consistent results for workflows such as:
- Sterile filtration of media, kits, and reagents
- Viral protein concentration
- QC testing of drug candidates
- RNA extraction
- N95 performance testing
- Wastewater surveillance
- Conjugate viral proteins
- Viral collection of COVID-19 in air
We have a complete lineup of filtration products for all size needs such as syringe filters, centrifugal devices, filter microplates, capsules, air/gas filters, vacuum devices, membrane discs, filter holders, and more.
We have a Scientific and Laboratory Services (SLS) team that can offer expert guidance based on individual application needs to match the best filtrations solutions for each application.
Please inquire about how we can help you with your filtration, separation, and sample preparation needs.
For reference, below are some applications and products being used by researchers today.
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Sterile Filtration of Media, Kits, and Reagents for COVID-19 Research
Researchers are using AcroPak™ capsules & Acrodisc® sterile syringe filters to ensure the sterility of media, kits and components used in research kits for COVID-19. Pall provides peace of mind for accuracy and reliability of sterile filtration, so developers can be confident in the products they manufacture.
AcroPak capsules come in various sizes and can filter up to 150 L. They include bacterial reduction and quality claims and are 100 % integrity tested for extra assurance of performance and quality. Pall Lab offers Scale-Up capsules that feature the same performance and materials as Pall’s GMP Pharmaceutical grade capsules and filters which can help streamline and quicken scale-up or scale out operations.
Acrodisc sterile syringe filters are ideal for small volume aseptic handling and sterile filtration of up to 150 mL solutions. Available in multiple membrane sizes and types for nearly all applications.
Viral Concentration of COVID-19
Researchers are using the Minimate™ Tangential Flow Filtration (TFF) system to achieve high concentrations of viral proteins in a faster, more efficient process compared to centrifugal devices or stirred cells. The Minimate system can easily concentrate viral proteins from solutions of up to 1 L.
The Minimate TFF system is ideal for lab-scale tangential flow applications for volumes up to 1 L and can efficiently concentrate, buffer exchange or diafilter. Our Minimate EVO system features reusable capsules with Omega™ ultrafiltration membranes that are ideal to concentrate proteins, nucleic acids, viral particles and nanoparticles. For smaller starting volumes of less than 50 mL, Pall offers centrifugal devices that use the same Omega membrane.
QC Testing of Drug Candidates for COVID-19 Research
Pall’s Acrodisc Syringe Filters are being used to clean up samples prior to HPLC and other methods of downstream analysis where a particulate-free sample is vital. Designed for optimal filtration and featuring a universally solvent compatible wwPTFE membrane, Acrodisc syringe filters are available in multiple sizes and diameters to minimize sample loss and maximize throughput.
For small volumes, Pall offers the 13 mm Acrodisc syringe filter with a minispike outlet. Benefits of the minispike include:
- 50 % Reduced hold-up volume of the sample, making it comparable to a 4 mm syringe filter
- Small diameter of the outlet allows for the minispike outlet to filter directly into HPLC vials, without creating a seal that could cause an airlock and halt filtration
For larger volume samples up to 125 mL, the 25 mm Acrodisc syringe filter is the preferred choice and is available with a pre-filter for difficult or dirty samples. Benefits include:
- Available in 0.2 μm and 0.45 μm pore sizes for UHPLC and HPLC applications.
- Polypropylene housing enables chemical resistance, and low sample binding.
- Cleaner filtrate for more sensitive applications
Extraction of RNA from COVID-19 Virus
Both the Nucleic Acid Binding (NAB) Nanosep® spin device and AcroPrep™ filter plates are being used for RNA extraction of COVID-19 prior to RT-PCR
The NAB Nanosep centrifugal device is ideal for research applications. It provides high yields that can generate enough sample for multiple downstream applications, thus saving time and money by eliminating the need to process additional samples. The high quality of the resulting RNA is the key to success in many downstream applications and makes these spin devices ideal for labs with low to medium throughput.
The AcroPrep filter plate with glass fiber membrane is ideal for isolating nucleic acids in high throughput and within semi or fully automated laboratories. They are truly high-throughput in 96 and 384-well plate formats that are automation compatible. AcroPrep filter plates can extract high yields of viral RNA making them an ideal solution for high throughput isolation prior to RT-PCR
The NAB Nanosep centrifugal device is a plug and play solution for RNA, gDNA, and pDNA extraction which allows researchers to utilize leftover reagents that have collecting in their labs. The NAB Nanosep device can be used with a variety of starting materials such as mammalian cells, plant tissue, and bacteria. Numerous protocols are available online, along with a Quick Start Guide to illustrate how easily this device can be integrated into a researcher’s exiting workflow.
Testing Performance of N95 Respirators
The global shortage of N95 masks has led to the purchase of substitutes which raises the question of how effective these respirators are in protecting against the viral or particle transmission. Pall’s A/E glass fiber filters are being used to test the performance and quality of N95 respirators and equivalents to demonstrate how well the masks block virus particles. These membrane disc filters can be used for testing dissolved and suspended solids in wastewater and gravimetric analysis of air pollutants.
Pall’s A/E membrane with a 1.0 µm glass fiber filter is ideal where gross filtration is required, to remove impurities before processing downstream. This membrane disc is available in 25 mm and 37 mm diameters.
Wastewater Surveillance for COVID-19
Research is ongoing to test wastewater for COVID-19 as a means to detect potential outbreaks of infection in a population or region before it is identified through patient testing. Pall’s Jumbosep™ centrifugal devices are being used to concentrate COVID-19 virus in wastewater to help predict outbreaks and adopt protective measures. Initial collection volumes are ~120 mL and the samples are first concentrated in the Jumbosep centrifugal device and then moved to a Microsep™ centrifugal device to concentrate further down to 200 µL.
Pall centrifugal devices simplify many common nucleic acid & protein sample preparation steps.
They accelerate sample processing, maximize sample recovery, add versatility, prevent solution bypass and feature high-performance Omega membrane for fast, efficient filtration. Pall has a complete line up of centrifugal devices:
- Nanosep centrifugal device: 50 µl to 500 µL
- Microsep centrifugal device: 0.5 mL to 5 mL
- Macrosep® centrifugal device: < 20 mL
- Jumbosep centrifugal device: 20 mL to 60 mL
Literature Library
Conjugated Viral Particles
The Centramate™ SS tangential flow system (TFF) is being used to concentrate up to 10 L of conjugate to help develop a rapid COVID-19 test. The Centramate systems proven bioprocess components offer high reliability and a compact flow path with the ability to scale from 1 to 125 L.
The Centramate SS is a stainless-steel holder and the Centramate cassettes feature Omega membranes for ultrafiltration of proteins, viruses, and nanoparticles or Supor® membranes for microfiltration applications. The Centramate holder is also available in a PE (polyethylene) version and a LV (low volume) version.
Viral Collection of COVID-19 in Air
While people around the world continue to practice social distancing and are spending increasing time indoors, we now need to know whether Covid-19 is present in the air of indoor environments. New research is being published using PTFE membrane discs and open-faced filter holders to collect COVID-19 in air samples.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7295527/
Pall offers a wide variety of PTFE membrane discs both supported and unsupported, and in a variety of pore sizes. Pall also provides open face filter holders in stainless steel, aluminum and in two and three piece cassettes.