Introducing column-free magnetic cell isolation MARS® Bar column-free magnetic cell isolation relies on isolating target cells labeled with magnetic particles and captured within magnetic field. Our column-free platform offers multiple advantages: it supports unlimited sample volume, allows flexible assay customization, and delivers high purity and recovery rates.
From isolating rare cells in peripheral blood to advancing diagnostic tools (e.g., FISH testing for multiple myeloma) and developing cutting-edge cell therapy workflows, our technology empowers researchers at every stage of the scientific and clinical development journey.
How does MARS column-free cell separation work?The column-free design of the MARS® Bar platform overcomes some of the limitations of alternative magnetic separation methods. Our proprietary magnet design enables consistent and efficient capture of magnetically labeled cells across a wide range of bead sizes, and without limits related to cell size or requiring single sample format.
With fully automated, continuous in-flow separation and no restrictions on sample volume, MARS® Bar offers a versatile and scalable solution for research, diagnostics, and clinical workflow development.
Figure: Step-by-step process of the MARS® Bar column-free magnetic cell isolation: from target capture, through in situ rinse, to cell release.
Top performance for maximum purity and high yieldsMARS® Bar features in situ rinse enabling improved cell purity within the same run, by rinsing and recapturing cells directly in the magnetic field. This allows users to increase target cell purity rapidly and efficiently. The column-free approach promises high purity and recovery of target cells by minimizing the risk of clogging.
The system’s gentle handling preserves cell integrity, resulting in higher viability and better downstream performance in applications such as sequencing, culturing, or therapeutic development.
Figure: Enhanced purity with MARS® Bar in situ rinse. Bar graphs show significant increases in target cell purity applying MARS® Bar’s in situ rinse. CD34+ cells from CBMNC reached 95.4% purity, while CD4/CD8+ cells from whole blood achieved 93.6% purity, demonstrating superior performance compared to baseline and standard positive separation methods.
Broad range of input sample typesMARS® Bar’s column-free magnetic cell separation system is designed to work seamlessly with a variety of biological samples — including, but not limited to, peripheral blood, cord blood, bone marrow, apheresis products, and leukopaks.
This flexibility allows researchers to process complex samples with minimal preprocessing, leading to reduced cell loss and improved cell viability. The gentle, column-free workflow allows high cell viability, making it ideal for cell therapy development, diagnostic tool development, single-cell analysis applications, and many others.
PERIPHERAL BLOOD
CORD BLOOD
BONE
MARROW
APHERESIS
AND LEUKOPAKS
MNCS
AND PBMCS
Figure: MARS® Bar enables high-performance cell separation across diverse sample types. Column-free separation preserves cell viability and reduces cell loss, improving research and clinical workflows.
One platform, every cell size
Separation in minutes — not hoursMARS® platform was designed to accelerate cell separation. Each module operates at a flow rate of 0.2 – 1.5 mL/min, reaching up to 4.5 mL/min depending on the instrument configuration. This significantly reduces total separation time, making it ideal for processing higher volume samples, or high-throughput needs such as leukopak processing.
Combined with the platform’s ability to accept a wide variety of sample types without lengthy preprocessing, MARS enables faster, more streamlined workflows.
Positive or negative magnetic cell separation?With MARS® Bar, users can design workflows most suitable to their needs. The system supports both positive and negative magnetic cell separation, giving researchers full flexibility. You can choose the approach that fits your science — our team is here to guide you in optimizing or developing protocols tailored to your cells and markers of interest.
Positive Selection:
Negative Selection:
| Method | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
|
Positive Selection |
High purity |
May alter cell surface markers |
|
Negative Selection |
Preserves native cell states |
Lower specificity in some cases |
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