Streamlining Barrier-Integrity Assays: Introducing the 24-Well SUMILON Companion Plate
In traditional hanging-insert workflows, media changes are a slow, manual bottleneck. Researchers must lift each insert—often with tweezers—to access the narrow gap between insert and well for pipetting or aspiration. This labor-intensive step not only adds time and variability but also risks disturbing delicate cellular layers. Now, WPI’s 24-Well SUMILON Companion Plate fundamentally reshapes this workflow by combining smart well geometry, integrated fluidics, and robust insert seating to enable fully automated, multichannel TEER measurement on the EVOM™ Auto—and to simplify every step of media exchange and sampling, whether done by hand or robot. It enables seamless media exchange and multichannel TEER measurements without ever lifting an insert.
The Challenge: Manual Media Exchange in Hanging-Insert Assays
- Tight geometry between well and insert prevents direct pipette or aspirator access.
- One-by-one handling of inserts with tweezers is time-consuming and can damage cell layers.
- Limited throughput makes large-scale screens or time-course studies impractical.
These constraints slow data generation and introduce variability—especially problematic in pharmacology, CRO screening, and academic barrier-function research.
The Solution: 24-Well SUMILON Companion Plate for High-Throughput TEER
The new SUMILON Companion Plate was engineered to integrate effortlessly with hanging-insert assays—whether you use Corning, Millipore, Grenier, Falcon, or other standard inserts—and to unlock automated, multichannel TEER measurement on the EVOM™ Auto.
The SUMILON Companion Plate combines universal compatibility, secure handling, and integrated fluidics to streamline media exchanges and barrier-function assays. Its wells accept standard hanging-style inserts from all commonly use manufacturers, seating them firmly via a precision notch that prevents dislodgement even when plates are tilted manually or in automated handlers.
Micro-steps molded into the well walls eliminate capillary-driven liquid rise, while a dedicated drainage groove ensures complete removal of spent medium. An adjacent port permits media exchange or sampling—and accommodates TEER electrodes—without ever lifting the insert, and the entire well bottom (including the port area) is cell-culture-treated to deliver a 187.5 mm² growth surface equivalent to a conventional 24-well plate.
Finally, each well is ringed by a sterilized-water reservoir to maintain humidity and minimize medium evaporation. Together, these features enable robust, reproducible co-culture and barrier-integrity measurements in academic, CRO, and pharmacology laboratories.
- Universal insert compatibility – works with most common manufacturers
- Secure, tilt-friendly insert seating
- Spill-proof well design
- Built-in media exchange port
- Cell-culture treated growth area
- Humidity reservoir
Benefits for Your Lab
The SUMILON Companion Plate enhances assay robustness and throughput by securing inserts throughout media changes, sample collection, and plate tilting—virtually eliminating the risk of disturbing the cellular layer. Its well geometry and micro-steps suppress capillary action, while an integrated drainage groove and side port streamline medium exchange and basolateral sampling without ever lifting individual inserts. By removing the need to handle each insert, these plates save valuable bench time and are fully compatible with automated workflows, including EVOM™ Auto-driven TEER measurements on 24-well format with hanging inserts. In drug permeability and barrier-function studies, the 24-well SUMILON Companion Plate supports both manual and robotic platforms, simplifying media exchange and compound recovery to accelerate pharmaceutical discovery and development.
- Protects cellular integrity by securing the inserts
- Suppresses capillary action preventing liquid rise
- Facilitates easy sampling without lifting inserts
- Saves hands-on time, accelerating experimental workflows
- Enables automation and HTS (High Throughput Screening) with EVOM™ Auto
- Enhances assay robustness in drug-permeability and barrier function studies by simplifying media exchange
Conclusions
For researchers running drug-permeability screens, barrier-function analyses, immunocytochemistry, or other endpoint assays, the SUMILON Companion Plate transforms hanging-insert workflows into a seamless, robotic-friendly platform. On the EVOM™ Auto, you can now perform 24 simultaneous TEER measurements—turning what was once a manual, single-channel procedure into a true high-throughput solution.
Whether you’re converting from EVOM™ Manual to EVOM™ Auto, scaling up CRO hanging-insert assays, or simply seeking to reduce hands-on pipetting in your university lab, the 24-Well SUMILON Companion Plate delivers the throughput, consistency, and flexibility your research demands. Empower your team to generate robust barrier-integrity data faster, reduce hands-on time, and accelerate drug-discovery or mechanistic studies.
Ready to transform your cell-culture inserts into a fully automated, multichannel TEER platform? Adopt the SUMILON Companion Plate in your lab today with the hanging-insert formats you already use and unlock the next level of high-throughput barrier-function analysis.
