SETIS Bioreactor

Temporary immersion systems

in plant micropropagation

BIOCHEMIE B.V.

Plant tissue culture methods have been used for more than 30
years to propagate a large variety of plants. The conventional
method, using semisolid (agar) medium, has been widely used
because of its simplicity and low costs. However, the huge amount
of labor required is a major disadvantage. New technologies
have been developed to reduce the handling time, while at the
same time increasing the multiplication rates and plant quality.
As a result, the Temporary Immersion System (TIS), was created
in the 80s.

There are various TIS bioreactor conformations, which have

been described by Etienne & Berthouly (2002). From those, the
twin-bottles principle has been the most used in commercial
micropropagation.
The SETIS bioreactor is based on this principle, using separated
vessels for plant material and growth media, but with an
NAGELE
optimized design and technology. SETIS is a standard and
ready-to-use system for large-scale plant micropropagation.

The principle of TIS technology is simply immersing the plant

material into liquid growth media for short periods of time.
These immersions are sufficient for the plants nutrients uptake.
TIS technology profits from the advantages of liquid cultures, while
growing the plants under high gas-exchange environments.
Stationary phase

Ventilation phase

Immersion phase

Compressed air is
supplied into the culture
vessel to renew its air
composition.

Compressed air is supplied

into the media vessel in order
to transfer growth media
to the upper culture vessel.

Compressed air
End of immersion

Growth media is returned

to the media vessel by
gravity force.

Advantages of TIS technology

- Production of more plants per square meter
- Higher multiplication rates
- Use of liquid medium reduces agar costs
- Higher nutrient uptake
- Reduced manipulations and labor
- Forced aeration increases growth and biomass production
- Improved plant quality
- Automatization

Flow direction of
growth media or air

The SETIS bioreactor and parts

Composed of two vessels:
- Culture vessel (5.6 liters) with 80mm neck opening.
- Media vessel (4 liters) with 50mm neck opening.
The culture vessel is positioned on top of the media vessel,
making the system very compact and easier to use.
The vessels contain two external hose-barb connectors as part
of the vessel body. There are no internal components in the
vessels.
The vessels are closed via screw caps (80 and 50 mm diameter),
using a silicone gasket in between to assure perfect sealing.
The culture vessel has a flat bottom area of 432 cm2, allowing
a high capacity and optimal plant material distribution.
External measurements assembled: 308x180x250 mm
Base measurement: 240x180 mm
The bioreactor requires horizontal shelving for optimal drainage.
The inclination of the culture vessel allows self-drainage using
gravity. A maximum of 3 liters of growth medium is completely
drained in approximately 5 min.
Working air pressure: 0.1-0.3 bar
The capacity of the bioreactor depends on the plant species,
ranging from 300 to 1200 plants per bioreactor.
All components (vessel opening, connectors and air filters), are
located on the front side of the bioreactor, simplifying access
once placed on the shelf.

Rack setup
Customized racks for SETIS bioreactors are available with
dimensions of 1,5x0,7 m. Each rack has four shelves with a
total of 64 SETIS bioreactors (8 rows of 8 bioreactors), with
the possibility to regulate the height of each shelf.
Bioreactors are placed side-by-side and back-to-back, guaranteeing a maximum use of the shelf area. All connectors are located
at the rack periphery, granting easy access by the operator, and
without interfering with the lighting.
The racks include the complete pneumatic tubing. In this case,
one line connected to the media vessel to allow immersion and
a second line connected to the culture vessel to allow active
ventilation.
Bioreactors can be separately controlled via the software in sets
of 1, 2, and 4 rows of 8 bioreactors each.
Lighting is installed optionally according to customer requirements.

The bioreactor includes stackable elements between both vessels

to assure a perfect positioning of the culture vessel on top of the
media vessel, and to avoid its diaplacement during operation.
Two handles are positioned at both sides of the media vessel to
easily carry the assembled bioreactor.
The bioreactor is composed of only three materials, polycarbonate
(vessels), polypropylene (screw caps and air filters) and silicone
(gaskets and tubing). All of these materials withstand autoclave
sterilization and gamma irradiation.
The design of the bioreactor, with its free and curved top, and
the high transparency of the vessels, allows a maximum light
incidence into the plants.
Note: Follow the instructions described in User Manual
(www.setis-systems.be), for proper bioreactor utilization.

Software and controls

This is an important component of any advanced TIS installation.
The link between pneumatic elements and computer intelligence
has to be perfect in order to precisely control the bioreactors
operation. This way, the operator enjoys the advantages of an
automated installation.
SETIS has built its own software/controls, based on state-of-theart PLC programming and high quality pneumatic components.
Some of the software features:
Control of immersion and ventilation phases
Integrated lighting control
Unlimited number of control points
Automatic time frequencies calculation
Optimization and reduction of air consumption
Create and save your own programs
Flexible and dynamic installation
Backups
Control points and alarms
Web-based access to control the lab from any location
worldwide
Easy and user-friendly interface
And many more

Cultivating different plant species

The SETIS bioreactor has been used to successfully cultivate
many different plant species, such as sugarcane, banana, potato,
eucalyptus, paulownia and orchids.
With its adequate culture volume, optimal light entry, complete
drainage and improved ventilation, the SETIS bioreactor is an
ideal system to avoid vitrification problems and increase plant
quality.

SETIS comprises all necessary elements for designing and

initiating a high-tech Temporary Immersion System laboratory.
Advantages of the SETIS bioreactor

Simple and minimalist

Compact
Secure
Maximum surface utilization
Easy assembly and handling
Optimal lab setup
Standard
Ready-to-use

Culture vessel

Medium vessel

SETIS bioreactor
SE-S01, B6000
SETIS is more than a bioreactor
The concept of providing an optimized bioreactor to the plant
micropropagation industry is not everything.
Additionally, there is a range of products and services offered under the SETIS brand name, such as bioreactor accessories, side
equipments and technology transfer.

1- 10 Units
e 93,50
11- 300 Units e 85,00
Each bioreactor is supplied with a culture vessel and a medium
vessel including their intergrated connectors, both caps, two
sealing gaskets for the caps, two air filters ( 50 mm) and
40 cm silicone tube (6/9 mm).
All components can be purchased separately.
Transport costs
These goods are shipped Ex Works (EXW) to all destinations.
Transportation charges will vary with the destination, weight,
and content of each shipment and will be subcharged
accordingly on the corresponding invoice.
Packaging details
Single unit package 32x28x19 cm (1.8 kg.)
Five unit package 98x33x29 cm (9.0 kg.)
HS tariff code 39231000
DUCHEFA BIOCHEMIE B.V.
A. Hofmanweg 71
2031 BH Haarlem
The Netherlands
Telephone: +31 - (0)23 - 531 90 93
Telefax: +31 - (0)23 - 531 80 27
Mobile: +31 - (0)6 34 78 29 72
E-mail:
F.T.M.Kors@duchefa.nl

BIOCHEMIE B.V.

SETIS
product of Vervit, Belgium