Microplate Reader / Microtiter Plate Reader

Microplate readers read biological, chemical or physical events that occur on a microtiter plate. A wide range of assays can be performed using a microplate reader including ELISAs, protein cell growth assays, nucleic acid and protein quantification, enzyme activity measurement, immunoassays, and screening of drug compounds and targets, among others. This makes these readers a staple in research labs specializing in drug discovery, bioassay validation, manufacturing, etc...

Considerations for purchasing a microplate reader

The first thing to consider when purchasing a microplate reader is the detection method. Microplates typically measure absorbance, fluorescence intensity, or luminescence, but models that measure time-resolved fluorescence and fluorescence polarization are also available for purchase. The type of detection to use will depend on the application. ELISAs and protein assays, for example, require absorbance to be measured while luciferase-based gene expression assays will require luminescence to be measured. Other things to consider include plate format – 96-well and 384-well plates are the norm but higher and lower capacity plate sizes are also available, speed and throughput needed, type of software, and whether or not multiple plates or wells can be read simultaneously.

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