Chemical apparatus and process disinfecting – deodorizing – preser – Analyzer – structured indicator – or manipulative laboratory... – Sample mechanical transport means in or for automated...
Patent
1986-09-11
1989-11-28
Marcus, Michael S.
Chemical apparatus and process disinfecting, deodorizing, preser
Analyzer, structured indicator, or manipulative laboratory...
Sample mechanical transport means in or for automated...
422 73, 422102, 436 46, G01N 3502
Patent
active
048836427
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to means for holding, treating, storing and analyzing fixed or living biological samples automatically and continuously.
The analysis of biological samples, such as blood or epithelial smears, histological sections or bacterial cultures, requires sequential phases which often result in observation under a microscope. In most cases, the conventional carrier formed by glass slides is used on which the samples to be analyzed are placed. After different operations, such as fixing and coloring, a thin glass plate is placed on the sample. This process is complex and difficult to automate. It has proved inadequate with respect to the capacities of automatic image analyzers whose use is more and more widespread in medical analysis laboratory practice.
2. Description of the Prior Art
For replacing the rigid and individual glass slides, several authors have proposed using a transparent flexible carrier.
Thus R. D. Mackenzie describes in "Journal of Medical Laboratory Technology", 1962, Volume 19, page 184, the preparation of blood smears using a strip of transparent plastic material.
The British Pat. No. 1 036 776 describes an apparatus and a process for applying biological samples on a transparent carrier ribbon for microscopic analysis, which apparatus comprises two reels for storing and unrolling the ribbon, one of which is contained in a fixing tray, a device for applying the samples on the ribbon, a means for mechanically locating the samples by perforating the ribbon, as well as a possible transparent film for protecting the samples placed on the ribbon wound on itself.
Furthermore, this document suggests the possibility of causing this apparatus to cooperate with a series of successive treatment trays, containing more especially the dyeing and rinsing liquids.
However, the apparatus of said British patent has never been constructed in practice on an industrial scale because the fixing, drying, rinsing, or dyeing times are very different from each other and may vary from a few minutes to several hours, which makes the known devices unsuitable for carrying out a treatment and microscopic analysis which are truly continuous.
The British patent application Nos. 24 304/73, 28 923/73 and 14 494/76, as well as the U.S. Pat. Nos. 471 072 and 589 483 also relate to this technique.
The general concept on which all the above mentioned techniques are based is the use of a transparent ribbon serving as collecting carrier for smears which are applied automatically while the ribbon is travelling past. Although the idea is attractive, it comes up more particularly against said difficulties, which explains that the glass slide still remains widely used whereas substitute methods are making their appearance.
Thus Technicon, with however numerous patents concerning the flexible ribbon concept, has chosen the discontinuous liquid flow system for establishing the blood formula. Other apparatus, such as counters and liquid flow cytometers, may claim to solve certain examinations. Such liquid flow systems, very complex and bulky, have two major drawbacks:
it is not possible to check the results of these automatic devices by a visual morphological examination, nor is it possible to archive the preparations;
the discontinuous flow or cytometry do not allow adaptation to be readily made to small examination flow rates or which vary a great deal because more particularly of high equipment cost.
Moreover, these liquid flow systems are totally unsuitable for the analysis of histological sections, biopsies and for bacteriological examination.
The purpose of the present invention is therefore to provide means for holding, treating, storing and analyzing fixed or living biological samples, automatically and continuously, by making some improvements to previously known flexible and transparent ribbons, by which in particular:
a very accurate topographical location may be obtained, within 10 .mu.m, of remarkable events formed for example by suspect cells;
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REFERENCES:
patent: 3464799 (1969-09-01), Kimbell
patent: 3497320 (1970-02-01), Blackburn
patent: 3526480 (1970-09-01), Findl
patent: 3619024 (1971-11-01), Frattarola
patent: 3620678 (1971-11-01), Guigan
patent: 3728081 (1973-04-01), Bidenset
patent: 4071315 (1978-01-01), Chateau
patent: 4218421 (1980-08-01), Mack, Jr.
Marcus Michael S.
Universite Paris-Nord
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