Facilities and Equipment

Abstract

Tissue culture should be done free of microbial contamination. This can be realized by keeping the room as free of microorganisms as possible, and by using sterile techniques. If possible, three separate rooms, i.e., a sterile room, an observation and maintenance room, and a washing and sterilizing room, are desirable (Fig. 1). However, this requires a large space. After the development of laminar flow cabinets (hoods), most investigators now use laminar flow cabinets rather than a sterile room. Therefore, setting up one room with laminar flow cabinets, and another room with equipment for observation and maintenance, has become common practice (Fig. 2). Washing and sterilization may be performed in a regular laboratory, because modern sterilizing equipment does not liberate much water vapor and heat. However, if strict sterility is required, it may be better to place a laminar flow cabinet in a sterile room (Fig. 3).