Abstract
In order to perform the procedures under their scope of activity, reproductive laboratories shall have the following (1) written instructions of how procedures are to be carried out, (2) personnel to perform procedures and routines, and (3) resources and facilities to allow procedures to be performed. The development of the laboratory procedure manual defines all aspects of work in a standardized manner. In theory, most procedures performed by RLs are fairly well standardized. These procedures have been designed to either diagnose or treat conditions which impair the reproductive potential of a given couple. In daily practice, however, there is a wide variation in the procedures adopted by different laboratories and even by different personnel working in the same facility.
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Appendix. Equipment, Supplies, and Reagents Commonly Used in Clinical Reproductive Laboratories
Appendix. Equipment, Supplies, and Reagents Commonly Used in Clinical Reproductive Laboratories
Andrology lab | Embryology lab | Cryopreservation and storage | |
|---|---|---|---|
Equipment | Phase-contrast microscopes with 10×, 20×, 40× objectives Optical microscope with 100× objective Cell counters (single and multiple channel) Counting chambers Humidified chamber Centrifuges (with adjustable speed and time) Refrigerator and freezer Vortex mixer Aliquot mixer Plate shaker Automatic pipettors (rechargeable) Air-displacement micropipettes with different ranges Analytical balance Warm and hot plates Water baths pH meter Spectrophotometer Luminometer Flow cytometer Fluorescence microscope Absorbance microplate reader Thermometers Incubator Laminar flow cabinet | Workstations for micromanipulation and gametes/embryo handling Inverted phase-contrast microscope with 10×, 20×, 40× objectives Stereomicroscopes Warm stages Tube heaters CO2 Incubators Electrohydraulic micromanipulators Laser system for embryo biopsy/hatching Refrigerator and freezer Centrifuge Thermometers Automatic pipettors (rechargeable) Air-displacement micropipettes with different ranges (5–500 μL) pH meter Incubator carbon dioxide measurement device Laminar flow cabinet or cleanroom environment Software for image capture and recording Data loggers Monitoring and alarm notification system | Automated-cryopreservation system Aliquot mixer Cryovials barcode identification system and reader Cryovial sealing device Liquid nitrogen containers Liquid nitrogen container alarm system Oxygen monitor Thermometers |
Supplies | Sterile semen specimen containers (tested against sperm toxicity) Graduated serological pipettes (1–10 ml) Test tube racks Polystyrene graduated centrifuge tubes Glass microscope slides and coverslips pH paper Filter paper Transfer pipettes (Pasteur pipettes) Microcentrifuge tubes Micropipette tips Marker Pen Nontoxic powder-free latex gloves Protective eye glasses Glassware (beaker, Erlenmeyer flasks, glass funnels) Catheters for intrauterine insemination | Graduated serological pipettes (1–10 ml) Culture dishes and flasks Syringes and syringe filter units Test tube racks Polystyrene centrifuge tubes Transfer pipettes (Pasteur pipettes) Micropipettes tips Micromanipulation pipettes Denuding pipette and tips Catheters for embryo transfer Sterile wipes Laboratory cryomarkers (nontoxic) Sterile nontoxic powder-free gloves | Plastic cryosleeves Cryovials Cryocanes Laboratory cryomarkers (nontoxic) Liquid nitrogen Cryogloves Protective eye glasses |
Reagents | Immersion oil Tyrode’s salt solution Modified human tubal fluid medium Phosphate buffered saline solution 1× Stain for sperm morphology Eosin Y and nigrosin stains Peroxidase staining Ethanol, 96% Benzidine 3% H2O2 Sodium citrate d-fructose Distilled and deionized water Resorcinol Concentrated HCl Bovine and human serum albumin Immunobead rabbit anti-human Ig (H & L) reagent IgA, IgG, IgM immunobeads Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) Luminol (5-amino-2,3 dehydro-1,4 phthalazinedione) Aluminum foil Oxidative stress assay kit Commercial kit for DNA integrity testing Isopropyl alcohol 70% Sterile wipes Lower and upper phase colloidal gradient Sperm wash media | Culture media Mineral oil Human serum albumin or synthetic serum substitute Sperm wash media Rinsing media Polyvynilpirrolidone Hyaluronidase Embryo biopsy media, microscope slides and fixatives Sterile distilled water Isopropyl alcohol 70% | Freezing media Thawing media |
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Esteves, S., Agarwal, A. (2013). Explaining How Reproductive Laboratories Work. In: Bento, F., Esteves, S., Agarwal, A. (eds) Quality Management in ART Clinics. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-7139-5_9
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