Great little Yeast starter vessel

[Dr Horrible]

I work at a biopharma plant and they gave a demo today on how they grow their cells up from the lab up to sufficient quantities to 'pitch' to the fermentation vessel.  At the start it's very familiar technology, the same as we would use for yeast - they start with a vial, then move to a conical flask on a mag stirrer, but for the next step up they use the vessel in the attached image.
It's plastic, with it's own mag stirrer/impeller attachment.  They run a tube through one of the lids to supply air and vent through the other. 
I ran up after and asked them for it, and they had a good laugh and gave it to me - I'm pretty sure they get them pre-sterilised so that one was no use to them anyway.  The main reason I am going to give this a try is I have a lot of trouble over the summer with fruit flies getting into my starters - if I use my aquarium pump for air supply and vent through an airlock there's no way the little feckers would get in.  Thought I'd post just to show what it looks like, I had no idea you could get something like this before today.

[Frequent Sequence]

Very nice. I think the Xmas tree stirrer class. Keeping the yeast in suspension in a gentile way is key. Nifty device

[Will_D]

They are fairly standard kit in Bio labs.

Cheap?  NO WAY !!

If you can blag a few more that have "NOT BEEN USED FOR EBOLA CULTURING" then we can always see you right

[LordEoin]

amazing the things people blag!

[Frequent Sequence]

Holy moley! just looked up the prices.    The disposable versions are nearly 200 quid! the glass ones are up on 800. great blag by the Doctor. 

[johnrm]

@Dr H, I never have an issue with visitors in my starters, just cover with tin foil.

[Dr Horrible]

I always cover with tin foil but even then a few have managed to crawl through and drown!
I'll definitely keep an eye out for more, generally things like these tend to get chucked if they haven't been used before the expiry date for sterility so I'll tell the guys I know in the lab to keep an eye out.

[biertourist]

Holy moley! just looked up the prices.    The disposable versions are nearly 200 quid! the glass ones are up on 800. great blag by the Doctor. 

wtf?!? For PLASTIC?

This thing is just ultimate coolness but the price is criminal...

[biertourist]

Anyone have a link to one of these things or know what they're called?


Adam

[Frequent Sequence]

Anyone have a link to one of these things or know what they're called?

Corning ProCulture Spinner Flask
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Corning+ProCulture+Spinner+Flask

[irish_goat]

How the bejaysus are those things so expensive? 

[DEMPSEY]

The pricing does'nt make any sense for what you are getting. Something wrong here or are you getting a truck load as well

[Sorcerers Apprentice]

Everything from medical suppliers have an extra zero on the end. I priced some lights for a client lately €150 each from beauty suppliers €1500 from guess who?

[johnrm]

I don't know much about these things, but they are on eBay for significantly less.

[Will_D]

Its called "What the market will stand"

Example:

A pharma company can "possible make" millions/or even billions from a new drug (recall that a new drug has just been approved in .ie at a cost of €166k per patient per year (for a new MS drug)0 There are MORE expensive drugs out there!

Now, in order to develop said wonder drugs you need some nice laboratory kit.

So what do the equipment suppliers say to themselves:

"We want a cut of this bio honey pot" so guess why a piece of sterille plastic costs hundreds of quid!

[/cyniscm Off]