I have no problems with cross contamination with this
humidity chamber. You do have to remove each slide to
rinse, but after the antibody rinse you can pick them
up, put them in a slide rack and rinse all at once,
lay them out again and go. It's really quite fast when
you get the hang of it. It's a lot faster than rinsing
one slide at a time.(you can also tilt the tray and
rinse all at once but only if you are using the same
solution on all slides). 

 The acrylic trays are used to space/separate the
metal racks and also to allow space in the bottom for
adding water for those long incubations.

I really like this unit that is why I ordered an extra
one for when I need to do more than sixty slides at a
time.

I have a Dako automated stainer now, but I still use
my humidity chamber when I'm in a hurry.

I guess it all comes down to what you get use to, what
works for you, and what your lab can afford.

Kathy Wortham 
USDA, Food Safety
Athens,Ga
  
--- Gayle Callis <uvsgc@msu.oscs.montana.edu> wrote:
> I have a question.  I looked at the photo of this
> humidity chamber, and how
> do you avoid running buffers, etc over one another
> when doing IHC staining?
>  do you have to pick up the slides to rinse,etc.  If
> so the coverplate
> system is a no hands on system from beginning of
> staining until the end.  I
> can see the advantages of the humidity chamber, but
> picking each of 40
> slides is a lot of manual work, particularly for
> fingers that dislike that
> kind of exercise and it takes more time.    
> 
> What do the acrylic slide trays have for design? Do
> they permit the fluid
> to be drained away without cross contaminating the
> other slides.  The
> Scytek Slidemaster allows tipping the slides in a
> way that everything
> drains away from the slides, no cross contamination
> with multiple
> antibodies.  This is another system that permits 20
> slides per unit, flat
> staining, very nice but a bit pricier than the
> Shandon humidity chamber.  
> 
> It this was the case, the old metal trays I have
> (same as in the photo of
> Shandon catalog) could be put into a Rubbermaid food
> storage container,
> elevated in some way, for less than $10 per
> container, and still use the
> metal trays, or the acrylic slide trays.  One could
> punt here for a lot
> less money, and I considered using my old trays, BUT
> the cross
> contamination and handling negated that efficiency
> problem.
> 
> 
> 
> Must be Friday!  No offense to the design, but a
> means of good drainage
> away from slides without messing up the adjacent
> slides would be a boon
> here for time and unnecessary handling improvements.
> 
> 
>   
> 
> 
> >Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2000 13:27:47 -0800 (PST)
> >From: Kathy Wortham <kjwortham@yahoo.com>
> >Subject: Re: Incubation chambers
> >To: Cynthia A Delong <DELONG_CYNTHIA_A@LILLY.COM>
> >CC: HistoNet Server <HistoNet@Pathology.swmed.edu>
> >
> >
> >Shandon Lipshaw makes a humidity chamber 
> >(clear acrylic with aluminum slide trays) that
> holds
> >40 slides (can hold 60 slides if you order extra
> >trays). We have two and we love them. 
> >
> >Shandon Lipshaw phone # 1-800-547-7429
> >
> >Humidity Chamber (order #197)
> >Extra acrylic tray (order #198)
> >Extra aluminum tray (order #203)
> >
> >Kathy Wortham 
> >USDA, Food Safety 
> >Athens, Ga 
> >
> >--- Cynthia A Delong <DELONG_CYNTHIA_A@LILLY.COM>
> >wrote:
> >> 
> >> 
> >> Does anyone know  of anyone who carries
> incubation
> >> chambers that hold approx.
> >> 40 slides.  I am staining large quantity of
> slides 
> >> and no I don't have funds
> >> available for a  automatic stainer.
> >> 
> >> Please contact
> >> Cindy DeLong
> >> Eli Lilly and Company
> >> C.DeLong@Lilly.com
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >
> >
> >__________________________________________________
> >Do You Yahoo!?
> >Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger.
> >http://im.yahoo.com
> >
> >
> >
> Gayle Callis
> Veterinary Molecular Biology
> Montana State University
> Bozeman MT 59717-3610
> 406 994-4705
> 406 994-4303
> 
> 


=====
Kathy Wortham
USDA,Food Safety Inspection Service
950 College Station Road
Athens, Ga 30605
(706)546-3556
kjwortham@yahoo.com

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