To advance our research on microbial and cellular phenotypes, bacterial pathogenesis, and host-pathogen interactions, this application concerns the acquisition of a digital dispenser system for high-precision, low-volume dispensing of chemicals and biologicals. The Tecan D300e Digital Dispenser offers a unique solution for reproducible and programmable delivery of a wide range of reagents, including small molecules, enzymes, and assay components, enabling the generation of customised assay plates for diverse experimental needs.

This device will not only support phenotypic profiling of bacterial strains (including mutant libraries), functional assays in the context of bacterial infection of eukaryotic host cells, and biochemical characterisation of host targets (e.g., substrate cleavage kinetics), but it will also enable flexible and cost-efficient MIC determination and dose-response testing, addressing key limitations of commercial assay platforms, such as Biolog plates. These capabilities are particularly relevant for compound screening and synergy testing in the context of enteropathogen research, including Salmonella and Campylobacter, as well as for assessing compound effects on commensal human gut bacteria.

By eliminating manual dilution steps and supporting complex, randomised plate layouts, the dispenser enhances experimental reproducibility and throughput across multiple projects. The instrument’s wide applicability – from microbial sensitivity profiling and synergy testing to cytotoxicity assays and enzymatic studies – ensures broad use within our research group and affiliated teams. The acquisition of this platform will significantly expand our capacity to perform scalable and quantitative phenotyping across axenic, commensal, and host-associated systems.