Pipette Primer: Types of Pipettes and How to Use Them | Corning Life Sciences

Scientific research and clinical applications often rely on precise measurements. Pipette can easily measure various liquids and provide important data for subsequent operations.

Here's what you need to know about the different types of pipettes, along with guidelines for use and maintenance.

Common pipette types

There are many types of commonly used pipettes, each with its own characteristics.

Serological pipettes

This type of pipette can transfer liquids in milliliters (with graduated lines to the tip) and measure liquids that require dispensing and aspiration. Serological pipettes (such as Corning ^® Falcon ^® Individually Wrapped Serological Pipettes and Corning Stripette™ Serological Pipettes ) are suitable for routine cell culture and transfer of cell colonies after harvesting. They can also be used to mix reagents, cell suspensions, cell culture media, or chemical solutions. In the clinic, serological pipettes are commonly used in urinalysis, blood banking, immunology, and hematology applications.

Transfer tube

Also known as Pasteur pipettes or droppers, these disposable plastic pipettes are used to transfer small amounts of liquid without the risk of cross-contamination. Transfer pipettes, such as Corning's Falcon ^® pipettes or Gosselin™ pipettes , are available with or without graduations and are useful for rough measurements. Transfer pipettes are commonly used in urinalysis, hematology, immunology, and blood banking applications.

Aspiration pipette

Aspiration pipettes (such as the Corning Costar ^® Aspiration Pipettes ) can be used to draw or aspirate liquids from containers, but they cannot measure volume, and are suitable for applications where accuracy is not a concern. Aspiration pipettes are open at both ends and must be connected to a vacuum pipette, such as the Corning Stripettor Ultra electronic pipette .

In addition to the commonly used pipetting products mentioned above, there are also more advanced pipettes. These pipettes are usually used in more professional fields.

Air displacement pipettes

In this pipette, there is a small column of air between the piston and the liquid to be measured. The piston is calibrated to ensure that a specific amount of liquid is pipetted accurately. As a result, this high-precision pipette performs excellently in a variety of pipetting operations.

Air displacement pipettes, such as the Corning Lambda™ EliteTouch™ pipette , are often used to accurately measure and transfer small amounts of aqueous or non-viscous liquids. It is important to note that temperature, atmospheric pressure, and the viscosity and density of the liquid can significantly affect their performance.

研究人员几乎每天都要用到移液器，若姿势不当，可能会引起不适并造成损伤，从而影响工作流程。移液器的人体工程学设计——从正确的姿势到精心的设计——有助于避免这些问题。

要想走向成功，应当一直保持良好的姿势：

• 使工作台保持在舒适的高度。
• 调整座椅，以便能够舒适地坐在工作台前。
• 移液时保持手腕放松。
• 移液时避免拇指或手指用力过猛。

为了保证高级移液器的性能和准确性，必须进行日常维护。下列5个步骤有助于延长移液器使用寿命并确保结果的有效性。

1. 清洁：任何污染都会导致结果无效。请遵循移液器制造商提供的使用说明，确保以正确的方式对移液器进行彻底清洁。请注意，正确的清洁方法可能取决于移液器的使用方式。通常情况下，注意不要将移液器完全浸没在液体中。若移液器特别脏，可以用软塑料毛刷刷去污垢。
2. 进行目视检查：定期检查移液器是否有明显的损坏或腐蚀迹象，以免对结果产生不良影响。仔细检查移液器各部件是否有破裂、早期腐蚀迹象或其它明显的损坏。此外，还要对移液器各组件进行测试。按钮应平整，无化学损坏或腐蚀迹象。
3. 进行功能测试：定期进行检查，以确保移液器工作正常。将移液器调至最大量程，测试按钮、活塞和吸头退出器是否正常。所有移动应顺畅，不费力或不卡顿。
4. 进行预防性维护：仅在事后维修是不够的。应将预防性维护和校准纳入日常保养中。预防性维护通常包括更换易磨损的移液器部件 (如密封件和O形环)，以及重新润滑机械组件。有关正确维护的完整说明，请参阅制造商提供的指南。
5. 制定维护方案：为简化工作流程，应制定维护制度和计划表并确保其中包含各组件的正确维护方法，如清洁、检查、功能测试、维护和校准。

选择合适的移液器、使用移液器时保持符合人体工程学的正确姿势、始终遵照计划表进行维护，这些举措有助于获得移液器的最佳性能，无论是哪种类型的移液器。