Thermo Fisher Scientific announces new blood cell washer

A new automated, high-performance cell washer has been recently announced by Thermo Fischer Scientific. It is specifically designed to enable precise, thorough, reproducible and rapid blood cell washing of up to 24 tubes in a three-minute run.

Fully automated, the Thermo Scientific CW3 Cell Washer has been uniquely engineered to combine the benefits of efficient performance with user-friendly design and safe operation. Users can select one of the pre-set programs that have been designed to run in automatic mode, accelerate blood cell washing cycles and achieve significant time savings, while allowing for maximum ease of use and sample safety.

Hugh Tansey, global product director, centrifugation, Thermo Fisher Scientific said, "Effective blood cell washing is extremely important in the removal of plasma and unwanted antibodies to ensure that patients will not be affected by adverse health effects and that blood-transfused products will retain all of their beneficial attributes."

"To address this issue, we’ve developed a novel cell washer to help clinical, hospital and serological laboratories, as well as blood bank and transfusion centers, fulfill their fundamental mission to promote the well-being of patients.", he added

The CW3 Cell Washer has been designed to achieve optimal corpuscle dryness by allowing users to pre-set the desired decanting speed. At the same time, corpuscle washing is improved via the optional overflow method. 

Built with sample safety in mind, the compact CW3 Cell Washer features an automatic alert mechanism that informs users about low or disrupted saline levels and when a run is complete. A view port on top of the unit facilitates quick calibration, while the saline distributor is mounted directly on top of the rotor to reduce the risk of cross-contamination. 

The Thermo Scientific CW3 Cell Washer is US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 510(k) cleared.