Liquid Handling In The Laboratory

There are a variety of different applications in the laboratory which call for precision liquid handling

. From immunological and serological assays, among many other medical applications to a variety of uses in the microbiology lab and beyond, pipettes and other liquid handling solutions are essential elements in ensuring the accuracy, reliability and reproducibility of laboratory work.

Pipettes in particular have come a long way since the earliest varieties came into use. The ancestors of the modern electronic multichannel pipettes commonly in use in laboratories and medical facilities today left a lot to be desired in terms of precision as well as safety; the operator would apply suction on one end of the pipette using their mouth! Today of course, we're a lot more conscious of the potential hazards posed by biological samples.

Modern pipettes generally use the air displacement method for greater accuracy; and of course, pipettes are now much safer to use thanks to the disposable or autoclavable pipette tips which are now the norm. 1972 is when liquid handling technology really began to advance towards the sort of precision tools used in laboratories today; this is when Henry Gilson and others at the University of Wisconsin developed the earliest air displacement pipettes. To this day, these are still one of the most accurate liquid handling solutions and you'll find many long-time laboratory personnel who still call these pipettes "Gilsons" in homage to their creator.

Liquid handling has also advanced in response to the higher throughput demanded of the modern laboratory environment, in parallel with the advent of multiwall plates for assays and other applications. Multichannel pipettes have made filling these plates a far less lengthy process; and new easier to use and increasingly ergonomic designs have made the lives of those who spend their workdays dealing with precision liquid measurement and dispensing far easier as well.

For applications where exceptionally precise measurement of liquids is called for, volumetric pipettes now permit researchers and other laboratory workers to measure out a specific volume of liquid. These pipettes are generally made for handling a specific volume rather than being graduated as are many other single and multichannel pipettes; something which eliminates the possibility of human error, making them ideally suited for solution preparation. Volumetric pipettes are commonly used for titration applications in the laboratory, though since many different sizes are available, they are versatile enough for a variety of different uses in the lab.

In the last century, liquid handling has gone from being a rather imprecise and possibly dangerous affair to something which can be done safely and with the highest standards of accuracy due to the continuing refinement of multichannel and single channel pipettes, tips and other tools for liquid handling in the scientific and medical environment. From electronic pipettes which ensure accurate pipetting every time to biodegradable pipette tips which reduce the environmental impact of laboratory work, the task of measuring and dispensing liquid samples and other materials becomes easier, more reliable and increasingly accurate with every passing year.

by:Andrew Long

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