The Systec VX-65 laboratory autoclave with a usable volume of 65 l is available for sterilization of both liquids and solids.

A nitrogen tank of the type Arpege70 from AirLiquide is available for the long-term storage of cells in the gas vapor phase of liquid nitrogen at temperatures of approx. -165 °C.

The biological laboratory has two Binder type CB CO2 incubators for cultivating cells at 5 % CO2 and a temperature of 37 °C. The two incubators allow the separation of the stock culture as well as the experimental set-ups.

Sterile cell culture work can be carried out in two ThermoScientific biological safety cabinets, the smaller Herasafe KS and the larger Safe 2020. In the Herasafe KS, 3D (bio)printers can also be used for experiments under sterile conditions.

The small peristaltic pump HP from Medorex allows investigations in the microlitre range. Two different 6-roller pump heads offer a pumping capacity of 4 – 800 µl/min for dynamic cell culture under flow conditions.

The IDD has several BlackDrop SuperFill Robo bioprinters. These are microvalve-based bi-printers that can print with two heatable microvalve print heads and one extrusion print head simultaneously. The microvalve print heads can be heated up to 70 °C, the extrusion nozzle to 230 °C. The print bed can also be heated.

Based on the same principle as BlackDrop SuperFill Robo, there is also a bio-printer on an Isel FB2 press, which includes a further print head and offers the possibility of selective cross-linking of hydrogels via an OmniCure 2000 Series UV spot curing system. With this printer, the print bed can also be tempered from -30 °C to +200 °C via a cold bath.

Nanoscribe’s Photonic GT2 Professional is a state-of-the-art two-photon printer that can print objects with a resolution of less than 1 µm in a very short time. The mechanism of two-photon polymerization can be used to produce extremely delicate objects for applications in microfluidics and nano-optics, as well as for advanced cell culture or artificial blood vessels. In this process, voxels are cured in a resin volume by pulses of a focused laser. By means of a positioning table, objects larger than the working range of the objective can be produced. In this way, structures several millimeters in size can also be produced with a resolution in the nanometer range.

The inverted light microscope Primovert from Zeiss can be used for a quick check of the cell culture. The two objectives with 4x and 10x magnification can examine unstained cells in phase contrast.

The fluorescence microscope Revolve from Echo is ideal for a more detailed examination of the cell culture. The special feature here is that it can be used both upright and inverted by means of a simple conversion. There are 3 objectives available with a magnification of 4, 10 and 40 in phase contrast. The microscope is also equipped with fluorescence filters for DAPI, FITC and Texas Red.

Tecan's Infinite M Plex plate reader can be used for biological and chemical assays in microtitre plates (6- 384 wells). The Infinite M Plex is equipped with a monochromator and can therefore test all wavelengths in the range of 230 – 1000 nm. Absorption, fluorescence or luminescence can be selected as the measurement mode.

The VWR pH20 pH-meter is a mobile hand-held device with a pH electrode made of epoxy. The device can be calibrated with the help of 2 points.

pH measuring range: 0.00- 14.00

pH resolution: 0.01

pH accuracy: ±0.02 pH

The high precision balance from the manufacturer VWR with 3-door draft shield can determine weight up to 210 g with an accuracy of 1 mg. It has an automatic calibration, which is started, for example, when the ambient temperature changes or after a certain time has elapsed. The scale can also be connected to a PC via the RS232 serial interface. Maximum load: 210 g

D: 1mg

The thermal shaker Thermal Shake Lite from VWR can be used in combination of heating/cooling and a shaking motion e.g. for the preparation or storage of bio-inks in Eppendorf vessels. The temperature range is from room temperature to 100 °C and the speed range is 300 – 1500 1/min.

The Centrifuge 5430 microcentrifuge from Eppendorf can be used for centrifuging small quantities of liquid in either Eppendorf tubes or Falcon tubes due to its two interchangeable rotors.

The ultrasonic bath Elmasonic S 10 H can be used for cleaning smaller samples. It has a capacity of 0.8 l and can be heated up to 60 °C.

The cold bath KISS K6 from Huber can be used to cool down to -30 °C and heat up to 200 °C using a cooling liquid.

Various mechanical Eppendorf Research plus pipettes with a volume of 2.5 – 1000 µl are available in the bio lab.