Baker introduces Cultivo CO2 incubator

Baker, a US contamination control specialist, has introduced the Cultivo CO₂ incubator to prevent contamination and deliver precise, stable and user-defined control over three variables critical for optimal cell growth – temperature, CO₂ concentration and relative humidity – all without noticeable condensation during normal operation.

Cultivo is armed with an array of features designed to prevent contamination. These include vertical, uni-directional downward airflow, which delivers unrivalled clean air (ISO Class 4, Class 10) to the incubator chamber within 60sec after the door is opened, made possible by a large, full-face HEPA filter.

In addition, a fogless interior door provides a crystal-clear view of cultures on every shelf, reducing the need for door openings when contaminants are more likely to enter the chamber.

Optional ultrasonic humidification allows users to eliminate the use of a water pan – and the risk of contaminants that typically go along with it.

InteliCELL is the intelligence that drives the performance of Cultivo, delivering a high level of precision, control, and uniformity

If contamination does occur, an optional, pre-programmed and easy-to-follow vaporised hydrogen peroxide biodecontamination protocol is available, which effectively kills vegetative bacteria, bacterial spores, fungi, fungal spores and viruses in under four hours.

The precise, stable and user-defined environmental conditions provided by Cultivo are possible through the use of InteliCELL, which consistently maintains user-defined set points, giving users ultimate control with minimal effort.

'This is beyond smart technology,' said Dan Eagleson, Vice President of Baker. 'This is the intelligence that drives the performance of Cultivo, delivering a level of precision, control, and uniformity not previously available to researchers within a CO₂ incubator. This allows them to explore the impact that each environmental parameter – or a change in those parameters – will have on their work.'

The core of InteliCELL’s design is a closed feedback loop which senses and responds to changing conditions in a controlled way. Through InteliCELL, Cultivo provides:

• Active control over the relative humidity (RH) variable. Technologies to provide precise, user-defined control of temperature and CO₂ concentration are widely available, but the same is not true for RH. Through InteliCELL, Cultivo corrects this problem by turning full control over RH to researchers with two programmable set point ranges.
• Superior condensation control. Cultivo delivers relative humidity levels above 90% with virtually no noticeable condensation. By factoring in variables such as surface temperature gradient and RH sensor accuracy, InteliCELL is able to maintain high levels of humidity and prevent the formation of condensation on nearly all visible surfaces.