The workflow

The stations

SMARTtray® Device

The device enables the cultivation and subsequent sampling of plants in a 96-well cultivation plate.

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Cultivation Station

Modular, scalable, customer-specific cultivation solutions are developed.

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Sampling Station

The sampling station was designed to reduce manual work steps to a minimum.

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DNA-extraction

Modular and scalable extraction methods.

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The SMARTtray® Workflow

Sowing the seed

The cultivation plate is filled with a substrate. With the support of a vacuum seed dispenser, the seed is placed in the individual wells of the cultivation plate. The roots of the plants grow through the bottom openings, the cutting wells and the openings of the cutting plate into the corresponding sample containers.

Cultivation

The plants are cultivated automatically under controlled conditions. LEDs enable targeted control of root and shoot growth at the relevant stage.

Sampling

As soon as the plants have developed sufficient root mass in the sample container, a cutting machine samples the roots with the cutter integrated in the device without damaging the development of the plant.

Dewatering

Several sample containers are dewatered simultaneously in a centrifuge.

Punching

The punching unit ensures contamination-free removal of the cutter and cutting plate from the sample container.

Continuous Cultivation

The intact plants remain in the cultivation plate and are then returned to the cultivation unit, while the removed root tissue is transferred to the laboratory for DNA extraction and marker-assisted selection (MAS).

DNA extraction

Depending on the application, different and scalable DNA extraction methods are used.

Marker-Assisted-Selection (MAS)

DNA analysis in the molecular biology laboratory to identify traits relevant to breeding.

Selection of plants

A laser unit supports the user when working with the seeds, both when sowing and when selecting the plants, and stores the information. With the help of barcodes and laser signals, individual plants are identified for selection and transferred to new plant containers.

Only the plants with the desired genetic traits are selected for further cultivation.
The SMARTtray® workflow automates and accelerates the plant breeding process by reducing the number of manual steps to a minimum while enabling precise and efficient sampling. The entire process from sowing to selection takes 10-14 days with SMARTtray®, depending on the plant species. Early sampling speeds up the decision-making process by 8 to 10 days compared to the traditional method.