Mini-bioreactors-MiniBio

Applikon MiniBio Bioreactor – 250 mL to 1 L, Small and Ultimately Flexible.

The Applikon MiniBio is a scale-down stirred-tank bioreactor in 250 mL, 500 mL and 1000 mL vessels — working volumes from 50 mL to 1 L — built for screening studies, media optimization and early process development. A configurable head plate, autoclavable design and the my-Control platform let you run up to 8 reactors in parallel, generating more data per experiment at a fraction of the media cost of lab-scale runs. 

Inside the Applikon MiniBio.

The MiniBio is a small-volume, autoclavable glass stirred-tank bioreactor — a true scale-down of the classical lab bioreactor, engineered to deliver the same control fidelity in a footprint that fits any bench. It’s the right fit for budget-conscious labs and for groups looking to compress development timelines by running multiple experiments in parallel. Whether you’re characterising a new cell line, screening media formulations or tuning a microbial fermentation, the MiniBio delivers the data you need without the consumables bill of a 10 L run. 

Built with Excellence and Experience.

The MiniBio is engineered by Applikon, the worldwide reference in bioprocess instrumentation, with decades of field-proven experience supplying universities, biotech start-ups and biopharmaceutical organisations across the globe. Each vessel is assembled from premium components and finished to the exacting standards that have made Applikon synonymous with reproducible bioprocess data. Resea Biotec is the official Swiss distributor and certified service partner — see below for support details. 

Ease of Setup with Advanced Process Control.

The MiniBio carries the most configurable head plate available in any mini bioreactor. Luer fittings give you direct access for sensors, sample lines and pre-assembled tubing — so an experiment can be set up, autoclaved at up to 130 °C and started within minutes. The vessels accept the autoclavable 8 mm sensor format (pH, DO, temperature and optional optical probes) and remain operable at up to 0.5 bar overpressure for both cell-culture and microbial duties. 

Process control runs exclusively through Applikon’s my-Control, a touchscreen platform that integrates advanced PAT functionality with full smartphone, tablet and browser access. 

Available MiniBio Volumes

The MiniBio range spans three vessel sizes to match every small-scale workflow. Working volumes are continuous from 50 mL through to 1 L.

  1. 1 MiniBio 250 ml – Working volume 50 – 200 mL
  2. 2 MiniBio 500 mL — working volume 100–400 mL
  3. 3 MiniBio 1000 mL — working volume 200–1000 mL
Video Tutorials

Applikon MiniBio Bioreactor – Engineering excellence in Bioprocessing.

Applikon MiniBio — Small-volume multi-use bioreactor to minimise media costs

Applikon MiniBio — Small-volume multi-use bioreactor to minimise media costs

Generate more data in less time

The Applikon MiniBio is built for teams that need answers fast and at sensible cost. A compact footprint and a redesigned autoclave stand mean a vessel moves from clean bench to active cultivation in a fraction of the time of larger lab-scale systems — temperature control and condenser are already integrated into the stand, so there’s no separate water bath to plumb in. Pre-assembled tubing kits and an intuitive sensor layout keep handling time short even when running multiple vessels at once. 

The real shift comes from running in parallel. Through the Multi-Reactor-Interface in Applikon’s my-Control software, a single operator orchestrates up to eight MiniBio reactors simultaneously from one console. Replicates, DoE matrices and head-to-head media screens that would otherwise consume a week of sequential bench work now finish in a single working day — same operator, same bench, eight times the data. Each station can be visually identified by colour, keeping parallel experiments organised even on a crowded lab bench.

For research teams under deadline pressure or budget constraints, the impact compounds week on week: shorter decision cycles, leaner media spend per data point, and a cleaner path from screening into scale-up. 

Flexible cultivation modes for every process

The MiniBio supports all four standard cultivation modes — Batch, Fed-Batch, Perfusion and Continuous — covering the full range of small-scale bioprocessing needs. Combined with the Applikon BioSep cell-retention device, the MiniBio converts cleanly from a batch or fed-batch system into a fully continuous bioprocessing platform, opening up high-density perfusion process modes at the smallest possible scale. Microbial fermentation, mammalian cell culture, stem-cell expansion and plant-cell systems are all covered within the same vessel platform. 

Hardware flexibility is what makes that range usable in practice. The configurable head plate accepts Marine and Rushton impellers, paired with porous, open-pipe or jet spargers — so a sensitive mammalian-cell run and a high-shear microbial fermentation can share the same vessel platform without compromise. 

Every cultivation mode is fully supported by Applikon’s my-Control software, with adaptive PID control, gravimetric feed control, optical dissolved oxygen, biomass measurement and off-gas analysis, plus plug-and-play support for a wide range of intelligent sensors. Operate the system from any device via the integrated web browser, and store distinct configurations per process so the next experiment is one click away from a validated setup. 

Applikon MiniBio
Workflows

What is the MiniBio workflow?

The MiniBio workflow covers the full small-scale bioprocess on a single platform, breaking into three phases.

Screen. Run replicates or DoE matrices across up to 8 vessels in parallel via the my-Control Multi-Reactor-Interface — narrowing strain, clone or media candidates fast.

Characterise. Drill into the leading conditions with full closed-loop control of pH, DO, temperature and feed strategy, generating the kinetic data your tech-transfer pack will need.

Transfer. Lock the protocol at the MiniBio scale that matches your downstream geometry — 250, 500 or 1000 mL — before stepping up to a Glass Autoclavable Bioreactor, BioBench, BioPilot or AppliFlex ST single-use system. Geometric similarity is maintained throughout, so process parameters stay consistent at every stage.

Why use the MiniBio?

  • Up to 8 reactors in parallel — generate a week’s worth of data in a single day via the my-Control Multi-Reactor-Interface, with adaptive PID and gravimetric feed control across every vessel.
  • All four cultivation modes — Batch, Fed-Batch, Perfusion and Continuous on a single hardware platform. Add a BioSep perfusion device to convert any run to continuous bioprocessing without changing reactors.
  • Direct Applikon scale-up path — process parameters transfer cleanly to Glass STR, BioBench, BioPilot and Single-Use AppliFlex ST. Geometric similarity holds throughout, so kinetic data stays consistent from MiniBio to production scale.
  • Swiss support, single point of contact — sales, IQ/OQ documentation and ongoing service through Resea Biotec in Recherswil. One contact for technical questions, spares and Applikon Academy training.

Ready to spec your MiniBio?

The MiniBio gives you a true scale-down of a full lab bioreactor in 250, 500 or 1000 mL — the most configurable head plate in its class, all four cultivation modes on one platform, plug-and-play intelligent sensors, and up to eight reactors running in parallel under a single my-Control interface. Pair it with a BioSep and any batch run becomes a continuous bioprocess without changing reactors. Process parameters you lock at MiniBio scale transfer cleanly upward through the Applikon family, all the way to pilot and production.

Send us the outline of your process — organism, working volume, cultivation mode, sensors you need — and we’ll come back with a configured quote, a realistic lead time, and the IQ/OQ scope where required. Resea Biotec is your Swiss point of contact for Applikon: one team in Recherswil, sales through service, no cross-border ticket queues.

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