a) Brand Examples: Bio-Rad QX200 Droplet Digital PCR (ddPCR) System or TPWD approved equivalent. b) Droplet Digital PCR System to include: i) Droplet Generator ii) Droplet Reader iii) Laptop computer with software for operating the droplet reader. iv) System Management Software v) Associated component consumables vi) 96-deepwell thermal cycler for PCR with cables vii) PCR plate sealer with includes heat sealing instrument viii) Plate support block that holds 96-well ix) Sealing frame c) Droplet generator is capable of creating partitions of 20 µI PCR reaction into 20,000 nanoliter-sized droplets. d) Droplet generator compatible with the DG8 Cartridge, which holds a total of eight reactions. e) Droplet generation to be approximately two (2) minutes. f) System capable of accurately counting target copies when multiple target copies are distributed in a droplet. g) Each droplet to be approximately 1 nl and have a diameter of approximately 120 µm. h) Droplets to be PCR amplified in bulk on thermal cycler with a 96-well format. i) Droplet reader is able to analyze a full 96-wall plate in less than 2.5 hours. j) Average time to run 96-wall plate 4-5 hours when including PCR assay run. k) Droplet reader is able to perform excitation and detection of at least two fluorescent dyes per droplet including FAM, HEX (or VIC), and EvaGreen® Dyes. l) Droplet reader to illuminate and detect fluorescence from each individual droplet. m) Droplet reader detects droplets without the need for additional passive dyes. n) Droplet reader is able to automatically gate out poor-quality droplets. o) System to have a linear dynamic range of five (5) orders of magnitude for detection of input samples. p) System capable of distinguishing between four and five copies of input target nucleic acid between samples. q) System should not require external gas tank or gas compressor. r) System precision ±10%. s) Estimated cost per sample is $5-6 USD. t) Installation to include the following: i) Completion of installation of the instrument in one day by a Bio-Rad Field Service Engineer ii) Training for one day (~8 hrs) with a Bio-Rad Technical Expert. iii) Removal of all trash from install. iv) System shall be plug-and-play once installation is completed.
