Partnership Integrates Automated DNA Extraction with Single-Molecule Digital PCR

Countable Labs (Palo Alto, CA, USA) and Promega (Madison, WI, USA) have entered a co-marketing agreement that integrates the Promega Maxwell System for nucleic acid extraction with Countable Labs’ Countable PCR instruments. The joint workflow is positioned to provide complete, practical, and easy-to-use DNA and RNA quantification across research settings. By combining sample preparation and analysis, the approach is designed to deliver accurate results from sample to answer.

The Maxwell System is a compact, automated benchtop instrument that uses a paramagnetic, particle-based method to purify nucleic acids. It can process up to 48 samples in parallel and is positioned as a reliable, fast, and simple solution that yields high-quality DNA and RNA suitable for a broad range of downstream applications. In this combined workflow, it serves as the front-end for consistent recovery, including from low-input materials.

Countable PCR isolates single molecules across 30 million compartments to enable true single‑molecule quantification. The system uses the majority of extracted material as input, allowing more complete interrogation of samples to maximize detection of rare targets that other methods may miss. The companies highlight applications in translational research areas such as minimal residual disease monitoring and liquid biopsy.

The offering is targeted to research use, and Countable Labs’ current products are labeled for Research Use Only (RUO). The companies state that the combined capabilities aim to deliver high sensitivity and robust scale beyond what traditional PCR methods have achieved. The co-marketing initiative brings together products and expertise to offer an end-to-end solution for DNA and RNA quantification.

Utility of the workflow was illustrated in a company poster in which circulating cell‑free DNA (cfDNA) was extracted from human plasma using a magnetic bead‑based automated method (Rapid ccfDNA Kit on the Maxwell CSC system). With a pre‑amplification step, a multiplexed KRAS assay on Countable PCR reached 0.08% mutant allele frequency (MAF) for G12C without compromising multiplexing sensitivity. Results were reproducible across technical replicates with minimal optimization.

“Countable PCR's ability to spatially isolate and detect single molecules across 30 million compartments makes it an efficient solution for a range of translational research and diagnostics challenges from monitoring minimal residual disease to pushing the boundaries of liquid biopsy,” said Anjali Pradhan, Chief Business Officer at Countable Labs. “Partnering with Promega gives our customers a seamless, end-to-end solution from sample to answer, empowering a new wave of precision medicine innovation.”

“Promega and Countable Labs are aligned in our desire to provide flexible, best-in-class, solutions for life sciences’ biggest technological challenges,” said Alok Sharma, Global Clinical Market Director at Promega. “We designed our Maxwell instruments and kits to provide the versatility our customers can trust, enabling experiments that reliably and efficiently deliver high quality nucleic acids from a broad range of sample input types and amounts, enabling many downstream applications.”

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Countable Labs
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