The latest article issued by Chinese scholars: Intelligent and automated microbial single-cell sorter EasySort AUTO

Single-cell analysis has become a powerful tool in life sciences, and the identification, sorting, sequencing/identification of in situ samples at single-cell accuracy plays an important role
in in-depth understanding of the structure and function of the microbiome 。 Qingdao Energy Institute Single Cell Center cooperated with Qingdao Xingsai Biotechnology to successfully develop the microbial single-cell automatic sorting system EasySort AUTO, which can upgrade the conventional microscope to an intelligent and automated sorting device for microbial single cells, and use yeast and E.
coli cells to demonstrate the whole process of single-cell sorting-sequencing/culture, providing a powerful means for the detection and mining of microbial resources, the research results were recently published in the journal
"Microbiology" mLife.

EasySort AUTO's "Insight" and "Skillful Hand" services microbiome resource mining

The microbiome (also known as microbiome) is ubiquitous in nature and the human body, and they contain solutions
to the major challenges of today's human society, such as precision health, carbon emission reduction, environmental protection, and clean energy.
However, the size of microbial cells is small, the manipulation is difficult, and the identification and sorting of individual cells is extremely challenging.
At the same time, the large number of cells in the microbiota makes in situ, single-cell level microbiota research particularly urgent for automated, high-throughput research
.

In response to the above problems, the research team led by Dr.
Diao Zhidan, Engineer Kan Lingyan and Engineer Zhao Yilong of the Single Cell Center developed a new generation of artificial intelligence-assisted microbial single-cell automated sorting system EasySort AUTO
based on Qingdao Xingsai Bio's single-cell microdroplet sorting system EasySort Lego 。 After testing, the AI-assisted image recognition algorithm equipped with the system can intelligently and automatically identify target cells, with an accuracy rate of 80%; System-embedded phototweezers technology captures and precisely manipulates target cells; Finally, based on the patented interfacial contact micro-liquid separation technology, target cells can be automatically collected in PCR tubes in the form of single-cell-one-tube with a throughput of ~120 cells/hour and a single-cell rate greater than 93%.

The single cells selected by the system can directly carry out single-cell sequencing and culture, and the success rate of single-cell sequencing is higher than 84.
2%, and the success rate of yeast cells and E.
coli single-cell culture is ~85% and ~80%,
respectively.

In addition, the design of EasySort AUTO has three significant features: 1) broad-spectrum applicability, because optical tweezers can manipulate cells of different sizes, the system is widely used for all kinds of single-cell isolation, sorting, culture and sequencing experiments; 2) Flexibility, the system adopts a modular design, and can upgrade the upright microscope common in biological laboratories to a single-cell sorting device by installing "smart hands"-optical tweezer modules and automatic collection modules; 3) High activity is maintained, and the target cells after sorting have high activity and DNA/RNA quality
.

The single-cell center has long been committed to the development, equipment development and industrialization of microbial single-cell technology, and has successively launched high-throughput Raman sorter (FlowRACS), clinical single-cell Raman susceptibility rapid detector (CAST-R), single-cell Raman optical tweezer sorter (RACS-Seq), single-cell microdroplet sorting system (EasySort) and other products in the early stage of cooperation with Qingdao Xingsai Biotechnology, and has entered the market
。 As a new member of the EasySort instrument series, the design of EasySort AUTO focuses on providing a pair of automatic "smart hands" for the "eye" of the microscope, so that the microscope can intelligently discover the target single cell and automatically isolate and acquire
.
Based on the above innovations, the EasySort AUTO system will provide a characteristic solution
for the sorting of microbial single cells with the advantages of convenient operation, flexible assembly, automated cell collection, and high viability of target cells.

The work was presided over by researcher Ma Bo and engineer Li Yuandong of the Single Cell Center, completed in cooperation with Qingdao Xingsai Biotechnology, and funded by the National Key Research and Development Program
.
(Text/Diao Zhidan, Photo/Liu Yang)

Original link: https://doi.
org/10.
1002/mlf2.
12047

　　Zhidian Diao#, Lingyan Kan#, Yilong Zhao#, Huaibo Yang, Jingyun Song, Chen Wang, Yang Liu, Fengli Zhang, Teng Xu, Rongze Chen, Yuetong Ji, Xixian Wang, Xiaoyan Jing, Jian Xu, Yuandong Li*, Bo Ma*.
Artificial intelligence-assisted automatic and index-based microbial single-cell sorting system for One-Cell-One-Tube.
mLife, 2022.