Preparation schemes

Preparation schemes correspond to industry-standard practices of dose preparation protocols. They let you efficiently assign dilution sequences and replicate settings to assay elements, ensuring consistency and reducing redundant input during setup.

About preparation schemes

When setting up biological assays, consistent and accurate sample preparation is essential. To support you during this process, PLA 3.0 provides preparation schemes, centralized configurations that let you assign dilution sequences and replicate settings to assay elements, streamlining the setup process and ensuring reproducibility.

You can set up preparation schemes once and assign them to as many assay elements as you require. This improves efficiency, especially when handling complex assays with many samples.

Every assay element has to reference exactly one preparation scheme. Standard samples always reference a multi-dose scheme. Test samples and control samples can reference single-dose schemes and multi-dose schemes.

Dose-response analysis documents support two types of preparation schemes:

  • Multi-dose schemes
  • Single-dose schemes

Multi-dose schemes

Multi-dose schemes let you define samples (assay elements) with a known dilution sequence. The calculation performs a regression for each sample that has a multi-dose scheme.

You can define the dilution sequence in several ways:

  • As a linear sequence using a linear dose axis (linear model).

  • As a geometric sequence using a log dose axis (linear and logistic models).

  • As a step-wise concentration sequence by manually defining dose values.

  • As a step-wise dilution sequence by manually defining dilution factors.

Multi-dose schemes are typically used for assay elements with defined concentrations, such as standard samples. Dose-response analysis documents created from scratch have a multi-dose scheme assigned to the standard sample by default:
Diagram illustrating the assignment of a multi-dose scheme. The pathway on the left illustrates a dark teal box labeled 'Multi-dose scheme,' connected to a light blue box labeled 'Standard.' The pathway on the right illustrating a single-dose scheme assignment is grayed out.

You can add more schemes and assign them to assay elements as you require.

Single-dose schemes

Single-dose schemes let you define samples (assay elements) with an unknown concentration. The calculation performs a regression for the standard sample and uses the resulting regression curve or line to interpolate a concentration value for each single-dose sample.

Single-dose schemes are typically used for test samples with an unknown concentration relative to the standard sample, and other controls such as positive and negative controls. You can use them to describe the asymptotes of 2-parameter and 3-parameter regression fits. Dose-response analysis documents created from scratch have a single-dose scheme assigned to the first test sample by default:
Diagram illustrating the assignment of a single-dose scheme. The pathway on the left illustrating a multi-dose scheme assignment is grayed out. The pathway on the right illustrates a dark teal box labeled 'Single-dose scheme,' connected to a light blue box labeled 'Test 1.'

You can add more schemes and assign them to assay elements as you require.

Note:
Control samples with single-dose schemes may also serve as positive, negative, or blank controls.

Work with preparation schemes

For details on how to create and work with preparation schemes, see the Create and assign preparation schemes topic.