Logos Biosystems releases new electrophoretic tissue clearing system with twice the features in half the space

Logos Biosystems has released the latest system for electrophoretic tissue clearing, the X-CLARITY™ Tissue Clearing System II. The new system has been upgraded with new features that make it streamlined, easier to use and more intuitive.

The X-CLARITY II is a compact, all-in-one, solution for convenient, rapid and electrophoretic tissue clearing (ETC). The system provides excellent transparency and is compatible with multiple tissue types and sizes, including hard tissues such as bone. Enabling preparation of whole tissues for analysis, the X-Clarity II saves users having to waste valuable time on the preparation, sectioning, labeling and mounting of hundreds of ultra-thin tissue slices.

A new ETC tower has replaced the previous ETC controller and pump and the system is neatly contained, with the ETC chamber and buffer reservoir sitting in a custom tray.

Benchtop space is always at a premium in the lab, since more space means more equipment can be made available for users to expand their research. With this in mind, the sleek X-CLARITY II has been designed to halve the system’s footprint.

The X-CLARITY II boasts increased functionality, featuring both active and passive tissue clearing modes rather than just the one active mode.  Researchers can choose from multiple options to tailor the clearing mode to their sample.

In the passive clearing mode, users can define up to three different cycles, where time, pump speed and clearing temperatures can all be precisely set. In the active mode, the X-CLARITY II can be set to apply a constant current or voltage.

The introduction of an easy-to-use, interactive touchscreen interface to replace the buttons that were previously used, means operators can now control the entire system and all its settings in an intuitive and straightforward manner.

Graphic onscreen readouts of the clearing conditions can be displayed in real time, including, temperature, voltage and current. These can also be exported to maintain quality control and keep a record of the clearing procedures and parameters that have previously been run.

Since the ETC process generates a lot of heat, Logos Biosystems has integrated a buffer temperature control module in the control tower to replace the small cooling system that was previously in the chamber. Buffer circulates in the tower, heating or cooling the solution as required, before it passes through to the chamber.

The new temperature control system allows much faster and more precise temperature setting, providing researchers with peace of mind. The extra equipment that may previously have been needed to ensure samples are kept at the right temperature is no longer required.

X-CLARITY II Tissue Clearing Applications

Tissue clearing provides users with a way of producing high-fidelity 3D images of their samples, without damaging or altering the underlying structure of the organic matter.

The X-CLARITY Tissue Clearing System is currently being used for the DataBrain project at the Centro E Piaggio in Pisa, Italy to develop a high-fidelity map of the brain using data of the neurons in their native 3D arrangement.

It is also being used in support of regenerative spinal cord research at the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Lausanne, Switzerland, where the X-CLARITY clearing technique was used to model severe spinal cord injuries in rodents. A severe contusion abolished all motor cortex projections below injury, which led to paralysis.

However, electrochemical neuromodulation therapy reinforced these projections and the motor cortex immediately regained adaptive control over the paralyzed legs. Reorganization of the circuit mediated a motor cortex-dependent recovery of walking and swimming without neuromodulation being required.

At INSERM (National Institute of Health and Medical Research) in Lyon, France, the X-CLARITY has been used to investigate the molecular mechanisms that control cell death during ischemia-reperfusion.

Logos Biosystems

Logos Biosystems is dedicated to the development and commercialization of innovative technologies to support the life science research community. Since 2008, Logos Biosystems has been developing a series of automated systems and imaging instruments for laboratories engaging in research with a cellular and molecular emphasis.