US-headquartered life sciences firm Promega has introduced Water-Glo, said to be a new and unique tool to help analysts at water treatment plants, and in other industries where water quality is critical to a process. It can quickly and reliably detect living microbes present in a sample. Water-Glo offers plant operators, engineers and water quality specialists a rapid, highly sensitive and flexible measurement system for monitoring microbial contamination in, for example, freshwater, process water, seawater or waste water samples.
Promega claims to be a global leader in adenosine triphosphate (ATP) detection – the ‘energy currency’ of all living cells that degrades quickly when a cell dies. Its Water-Glo kits use novel technology, says the firm, employing a lysis and detection reagent combination. Formatted for lab use in a 96-well plate format, Water-Glo kits and companion instrumentation “can quickly analyze ATP levels in up to 90 samples in less than 90 minutes.”
ATP is emerging as a powerful addition or replacement technology for gaining a better understanding of microbial populations in complex water ecosystems. Users get clear insight into how many live bacteria are in a sample and can predict how they might impact on water quality and process performance. In addition to public health concerns, bacterial growth causes issues such as biofilm formation (biofouling) and microbial-influenced corrosion (MIC) within pipelines and storage tanks. Early detection can prevent problems leading to contamination, downtime and costly repairs.
Water-Glo gives an immediate indication of microbial contamination that conveniently shortcuts the need to wait for microbes to grow in culture. This means that the effectiveness of biocide treatments or biological filtration processes can be monitored.
Hemanth Shenoi, Global Commercialization Marketing Manager, Applied Markets, Promega, said: “We have leveraged over 25 years of expertise in bioluminescence technology to develop the Water-Glo product and are proud to have created one of the most sensitive tools in ATP detection in the environmental and water testing industry. Traditional testing methods require days for culturing bacteria and, often, by the time you find out there’s contamination, it’s already too late. Because Water-Glo is based on ATP bioluminescence technology, users get consistent, low-level detection of all live microbes in minutes rather than days, which makes it the ideal early warning system to protect critical processes.”
To find out more about the Water-Glo system, visit www.Promega.com/ProtectYourProcess.
