Method for sealing and venting a microplate assembly

A method of sealing and venting multiple open wells contained in a multi-well microplate, each said well comprising a fluid vessel with an opening, an interior volume and a liquid-holding space located in said interior volume, said wells being sealed to prevent independent passage of liquid from said liquid-holding space to the exterior of said vessel, said method comprising the steps of:

• inserting a plug having a flexible body with a resilient surface in each of said openings to form a friction-tight impermeable seal between said resilient surface and a surface of said opening;
• forming a vent hole in the interior volume of each said well outside said liquid holding space for all possible positions of each said well;
• extending a passage from each said vent hole through the flexible body of each said plug to the exterior of said wells;
• placing a resilient barrier across each said tubular passage to partially cover each vent hole, wherein said resilient barrier defines an axial opening which forms a vent when not penetrated by a probe;
• and
• joining said plugs to each other with a flexible sheet in a planar array to match a pattern of said open wells.