Cyclic Olefin Polymers: Innovative Materials for High-Density Multiwell Plates

Abstract

Extension of ultra-high-throughput experiment (UHTE) approaches to new assay methodologies is often limited by compromised data quality when samples are miniaturized. Overcoming this challenge requires attending to all components of an automated laboratory system contributing to assay variability. A key but often neglected source is the high-density multiwell platform or microtiter plate. Materials from which plates are fabricated may degrade or otherwise compromise an assay through a variety of sources, including structural weakness, distortion of optical signals, and chemical contamination. Cyclic olefin polymer (COP) resins (CAS Registry Number 26007-43-2, inclusive of polymers and copolymers, sometimes referred to as cyclo-olefin polymers or copolymers) are receiving attention for their structural strength, optical clarity, and biocompatibility. The physical and chemical properties of COP are reviewed for their ramifications on the performance of high-density multiwell plates. Cells known to be difficult to culture in standard plasticware thrive in miniaturized COP wells. In addition, cell-based assays whose data deteriorated when miniaturized in standard plastic reveal a robust recovery of data quality when miniaturized in COP. It is hoped that the material qualities and advantages of COP become better appreciated among the screening and biological communities.

Development of Highly Functional Biomaterials by Decoupling and Recombining Material Properties

“…[ 17 ] Subsequently, using this casting as a mold, geometrical analogs were made in cyclic olefi n copolymer (COC), an amorphous transparent copolymer that is gaining attention for its optical clarity, biocompatibility, and structural strength. [ 18,19 ] A schematic of the entire process is shown in Figure 1 A. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of an original MN crystal and its analog in COC (Figure 1 B1,C1, respectively) demonstrated that it was possible to reproduce the needle-like shape of the crystal in its original size. High-magnifi cation SEM images (insets in Figure 1 B1,C1) demonstrated Functional biomaterials are gaining importance in regenerative medicine as alternatives to classical treatments based on patient's own tissue, the limited supply of which is an important concern.…”

Polymeric-Based In Vitro Diagnostic Devices

“…Among them, the unique properties of COP, including high resistance to chemicals, high biological compatibility, high transparency in the visible and near-ultraviolet regions of the spectrum, low autofluorescence, low water absorption, low oxygen and moisture permeability, and low gas emissions, make it a strong candidate material for IVD formats [26][27][28].…”

Physico-chemical ageing of ethylene–norbornene copolymers: a review

“…In addition, they are widely used in the field of diagnostics for microwell plates as well as microfluidic devices and biodiagnostic chips [11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22]. COC have a low density and low autofluorescence [12,23].…”

“…As a result, they have attracted considerable recent attention as substrate for biochips [24,25]. COC are also used for biosensor technology [26,27], DNA immobilization [28], microarrays, nucleic acid purification and immunoassays [17,[29][30][31][32][33]. The use of a blend of COC with polyethylene for the creation of bone replacement materials has also been reported [34].…”