Prior Scientific's PL-200 Slide Loader Provides for Automation of High-Throughput Megaslide scanning on 2"x3" slides.
Prior Scientific's PL-200 Slide Loader Provides for Automation of High-Throughput Megaslide scanning on 2"x3" slides.
01/14/11 When scientists at a California drug company studying gene expression in mouse brains were seeking a way to scan tissue slices at high volumes, they thought it a good idea to use the larger 2"x3" slide platform.
This way they could image more slices per slide and save time during the scanning process.
When it came to image the thousands of slides they had prepared, they soon discovered that nearly no commercially available systems could support their 2"x3" mega slide platform with the versatility required.
Secondly, due to the volume of data that needed to be handled, they needed equipment that featured the ability to process the images and store large volumes of data efficiently.
Their existing in-house instruments limited their scanning to 1x3 slides or could not offer the preferred versatility in imaging choices.
Add to that the fact the few existing platforms that could image 2"x3"slides could only handle a few slides at a time.
Purchasing new equipment to meet their needs would cost over $250k.
They needed something that could automatically load 2x3" slides, scan and image them, and archive the files effectively".
"For our researchers in California, the solution was to utilize the Prior PL-200 slide loader, a Leica DM6000 microscope with Prior H101A automated XY stage, and Objective Imaging Surveyor with the Oasis card for software and control".
"This provided a scalable, versatile solution which was very cost effective".
"The Prior PL-200 can load up to 100 2"x3" slides in a single run".
"This enables the scanning of a larger sample area per slide whilst providing high-throughput automation".
"By automatically scanning an array of slides, the lab is able to save time and resources by utilizing the machine at all hours while researchers are free to work on other projects or overnight while they are home with their families sleeping".
"The two racks of 50 slides are "hot" swappable".
"This allows a completed rack to be replaced with a new rack during the scanning process and sensors in the system let the software know that there is a new rack to scan, all without interrupting any of the processes".
"The PL-200 can be controlled by most major imaging platforms for microscopy, including: Objective Imaging's Surveyor software with Turboscan, Molecular Devices' MetaMorph image acquisition and analysis software, ImagePro by Media Cybernetics, and Nikon Elements".
"The Prior PL-200 and a compatible motorized stage can be fitted to virtually any modern upright microscope".
"The Prior ProScan3 controller or an equivalent controller, such as the Oasis PCI card, appropriate imaging software, and a computer capable of handling software and data storage requirements are all what is needed for complete automation".
"For those researchers, who are developing their own software, Prior Scientific provides a software development kit (SDK) with drivers, DLL and code samples in Visual Basic".
"The Prior PL-200 has the advantage that it works with existing microscope systems and provides an effective high-throughput scanner for less than half the cost of other existing scanning systems".
"In many cases, existing equipment is sufficient to begin high-throughput scanning".
"To upgrade any imaging method that is supported by the software, microscope, and does not interfere with the PL200 and stage movements can be utilized, such as Fluorescence, phase contrast, or DIC.
The PL-200 offers additional benefits as well".
"It does scan up to 200 standard 1x3 slides or 100 2x3 slides".
"In addition is easy to setup, align, and maintain".
"Movement uses a 3-axis coordinate system that is equipped with sensors on the gripper, on each axis of the loader robot and at the stage to detect when and where a slide is present, which is essential if a problem does arise during loading".
"Sensors also monitor the presence of the slide racks so that the system can intelligently respond when racks are changed in the middle of a run".
"Individual slides are also detected in each rack so that the software knows exactly where the slides are in each rack, which allows for random sampling or sorting the slides based on the analysis from the scan on the microscope".
"Prior has optimized the loader and stage to provide the highest productivity with a complete system capable of performing load/unload cycles in as little as 24 seconds".
"In the case of the California lab, the software and control of the PL-200, automated stage, and microscope were provided by Objective Imaging's Surveyor with Turboscan and the Oasis PCI card respectively".
"Surveyor with Turboscan provides for fully-automated tissue detection and focus setup for one or more tissues per slide".
"Such as in this case where researchers required an array of mouse brain slices on a single slide".
"The software can detect each brain and scan appropriately".
"Additional features such as tiling and stitching are also supported".
"A typical sample can be scanned at 10x producing an image with a resolution of 0.4 um/pixel with a total size of 1.4GB, for example".
"With Mosaic capability Surveyor can provide a very high resolution image (Figure 4)".
"For archiving, Surveyor appends the barcode for each slide to its file name, allowing for easy file handling and archiving of tissue images".
"For this application, the Leica DM6000 microscope offered excellent optical precision and image quality".
"It came equipped with an automated condenser, objective turret, and z focus control which can also be controlled by the Oasis PCI card".
"The slides were prepared at Neuroscience Associates which provided a novel approached to sampling mouse brain tissues".
"Their methods are capable of providing up to 24 brain slices per slide, thanks to their MultiBrain Technology"".
""The benefits of "mass production" are thus made available to neurohistology".
"Using their novel approach it is possible to perform neurohistology up to 25 times faster than by conventional techniques".
"Just as the lab in California was able to provide a fully operational 2"x3" slide scanner using the Prior PL200, Leica DM6000, and Surveyor software, it is possible to assemble an equally powerful high-throughput scanner on 2x3" slides using the PL200 .
All that is required is a suitable upright microscope and appropriate imaging software, as the PL200 is compatible with most major upright scopes and some inverted models.
As researchers, reference labs, hospital histology, and biopharmaceutical companies working in Neurohistology expand and need higher throughput, there is a greater demand for equipment that is scalable, versatile, and cost effective.
The Prior PL-200 provides a workable solution that is expandable and works with a broad range of microscope systems.
It offers scalability for the changing needs of the user as it is capable of handling both 1x3 and 2x3 slides.
The PL200 along with Prior's many microscope and software partners, can now offer high-throughput capability to neurohistology at a fraction of the cost of previously available systems.
