Beckman Coulter TQ-Prep, Reference

Page: 12 / 87

PN 4237395AA
1-1
1 1
USE AND FUNCTION
1.1 INTENDED USE
The COULTER TQ-Prep Workstation, Figure 1.1, is a general purpose laboratory instrument
used with the COULTER ImmunoPrep Reagent System to prepare leukocytes from whole
blood for quantitative immunofluorescence measurements on optical flow cytometers. The
system is intended For In Vitro Diagnostic Use.
Figure 1.1 COULTER TQ-Prep Workstation
1.2 METHOD HISTORY
The ability to classify human white cells based on their expression of cell surface antigens has
provided investigators with valuable diagnostic and prognostic information.
1
,
2
Historical methods of isolating leukocytes for immunofluorescence include whole-blood
lysing techniques and density gradient separation techniques.
3
Such commercially available procedures require washing the sample to remove unbound
antibody and debris. The repeated trauma of mixing, vortexing and centrifugation can
selectively damage malignant or "activated" cells. In addition, nonrandom cell loss can occur
by adherence to containers or failure to form a complete pellet during centrifugation.
4
Most
procedures are labor intensive, require exacting technique and become unmanageable when
processing large numbers of samples.
In 1987, the COULTER ImmunoPrep™ Reagent System and Q-Prep™ Workstation were
introduced for rapid, automated, whole-blood preparation for immunophenotyping and are
widely used in a variety of flow cytometry laboratories today.
5
,
6
Then in 1992, the COULTER
ImmunoPrep Reagent System and Multi-Q-Prep™ Workstation were introduced, extending
the Q-Prep system automated preparation of whole blood from one sample at a time to up to
32 samples per batch.
The TQ-Prep Workstation automatically prepares 32 sample batches, like the Multi-Q-Prep
Workstation, but is designed for laboratories with high-workload requirements.