Uniform shearing
No edge effects, well to well
Bomsztyk et al., Nucleic Acids Research, 2019. The architecture paper — uniform shearing across the plate, edge to edge, with no plate-edge effects.
Read paperOne instrument for the range of sample prep your lab actually runs.
PIXUL is the 96-well multi-sample sonicator that disrupts cells, tissues, and FFPE, extracts protein and RNA, and shears chromatin and DNA — across your epigenetics, genomics, proteomics, transcriptomics, and multi-omics workflows. Up to 96 samples in one run, on off-the-shelf standard plates.
Installed and maintained in-house. Non-proprietary standard plates.
What are you running?
Proteomics sample prep
Disrupt cells and extract protein across your proteomics workflows — discovery, quantitative, PTM, FFPE, and antibody-based, on one plate.
See proteomics workflowsNGS library prep
FFPE, metagenomics, cfDNA controls, and gDNA. Bias-free mechanical shearing to NGS-ready size, in one run.
See genomics workflowsMatched-sample multi-omics
Chromatin, DNA, RNA, and protein from one sample — different programs per column, same plate, same run.
See multi-omics workflowsYour lab is asked to handle more groups, more sample types, more users, more questions — on a budget. The instrument that earns its bench space handles the whole range, is maintained in-house by your own team, and runs on off-the-shelf standard plates.
96 samples, two ways: watch the difference.
Press run. A probe sonicator works one sample at a time, attended, with dry ice to manage; PIXUL runs the full plate in parallel and hands-off. Scaled here to 12 seconds.
Before · probe sonicator
One at a time. ~4 min/sample. ~6.4 hours to clear a plate.
After · PIXUL parallel
All 96 at once. Same downstream workflow.
"Since the first time I sonicated my samples and got expected results in ~30 minutes, I don't want to look back at those days when I had to hold my tube and be seated for hours sonicating all my samples one by one." — PIXUL user, core facility
"It's just the simplest equipment we have. We never had to optimize." — PIXUL user, proteomics core
Up to 12 workflows. One plate. Multi-application versatility.
One program per column — up to 12 in a single run. Here, chromatin runs in columns 1–2 while RNA runs in 5–6: six applications on one plate, one run. Run as few or as many columns as your samples need.
Multi-application 96-well run Demonstration
Chromatin (ChIP) gDNA shearing RNA extraction Protein lysis FFPE cfDNA
PIXUL energizes only two non-adjacent columns at a time, with paced gaps that keep wells cool and let different sample types sit side by side without cross-contamination.
Serve the whole range. Maintain it yourself. No lock-in.
1 plate
different protocols, different samples, one run
- Column-level programming runs different protocols in different columns
- New sample types absorbed without buying another instrument
- One instrument across epigenetics, genomics, proteomics, transcriptomics, and multi-omics
In-house
installed over a call, maintained by your team
- Chiller and touchscreen built in — no separate computer, fluid tank, or degassing wait
- Antimicrobial coupling fluid resists microbial growth — no water-bath tank to disinfect between runs
- Installs over a call, with maintenance your team handles in-house
Standard plates
easy-to-obtain, non-proprietary plates
- Off-the-shelf plates you already use for cell culture
- Standard 96-well plates — no proprietary plate to source or stock
- Plate cost stays flat as your sample count grows
Where PIXUL stands alone.
Validated in peer-reviewed publications.
Protein yield equivalent to probe sonication
Across a full 96-well plate
LC-MS/MS protein yield equivalent to one-at-a-time probe sonication, across all 96 wells in one run. Validated in peer-reviewed publications.
See the proteomics data Multi-omics, one plate
Chromatin · RNA · protein · methylation
MultiomicsTracks96, 2024. From frozen and FFPE matched mouse organs — one instrument, one plate.
Application noteWhat you want to know before evaluating.
How does PIXUL compare to focused-ultrasonication alternatives?
Focused-ultrasonication systems are the precision instrument — best in class for short-fragment, single-sample precision work. PIXUL is the 96-well multi-sample instrument for high-throughput workflows. Most labs own both: the two partition by application, not by replacement.
How does PIXUL compare to bead-beating workflows?
Bead-beating and ultrasonic homogenization do different jobs, and they often run in sequence. Bead milling excels at the initial mechanical breakdown of tough, fibrous tissue; PIXUL then shears the released chromatin, gDNA, and cfDNA to a controlled, reproducible size. Active Motif and Omni (Bead Ruptor, now part of Revvity) co-published a workflow that runs bead-mill homogenization upstream and PIXUL sonication downstream for exactly this. On its own, PIXUL handles soft-to-moderate samples directly and stays platform-agnostic across all major mass spec systems.
What about probe sonicators?
One sample at a time, operator-dependent, with thermal spikes between samples — the better part of a day to clear a 96-well plate. PIXUL processes the same 96 in 5–30 minutes with uniform results across the plate, and the LC-MS/MS protein yield is equivalent.
Are the plates really standard?
Yes — off-the-shelf 96-well polystyrene:
- No proprietary resin, no acoustic coating, no costly proprietary labware
- The same plate format your institution already uses for cell culture
- No transfer step between culture and lysis
Skip the brochure tour.
Talk to a PIXUL specialist.
A short working call — 15 to 30 minutes. Walk through your application, share what you've tried, hear what PIXUL changes — and what it doesn't.
Speak to a specialist →