Automated high volume slide processing system

• US 20050250211A1
• Filed: 07/13/2005
• Published: 11/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/15/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ventana Medical Systems Incorporated (Roche Holding AG)
• Original Assignee: Ventana Medical Systems Incorporated (Roche Holding AG)
• Inventors: Showalter, Wayne, Reinhardt, Kurt, Ghusson, Andrew, Ward, Glen, Christensen, Kimberly, Lemme, Charles D., Freeman, Matthew, Ashby, Austin, Campbell, Devon C., Holubec, Miroslav, Mehta, Parula, Hendrick, Kendall B., Ambler, Brandon, Rizzo, Vince, Griebel, Rick, Borchert, Chris, Richards, William L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,663,991 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 436/43
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0822 Slides
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 9/52 Supports specially adapted for flat sample carriers, e.g. for plates, slides, chips
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 1/30 Staining; Impregnating ; Fixation; Dehydration; Multistep processes for preparing samples of tissue, cell or nucleic acid material and the like for analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 1/312 for samples mounted on planar substrates
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 1/36 Embedding or analogous mounting of samples
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00039 Transport arrangements specific to flat sample substrates, e.g. pusher blade
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00138 Slides
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/00029 provided with flat sample substrates, e.g. slides G01N35/028 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/00732 Identification of carriers, materials or components in automatic analysers
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/0099 comprising robots or similar manipulators robots per se B25J
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/11 Automated chemical analysis
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/112499 with sample on test slide
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/25 including sample preparation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/2575 Volumetric liquid transfer

Abstract

An automated system is provided for performing slide processing operations on slides bearing biological samples. In one embodiment, the disclosed system includes a slide tray holding a plurality of slides in a substantially horizontal position and a workstation that receives the slide tray. In a particular embodiment, a workstation delivers a reagent to slide surfaces without substantial transfer of reagent (and reagent borne contaminants such as dislodged cells) from one slide to another. A method for automated processing of slides also is provided.

Claims

1. An automated method for processing a plurality of slides bearing biological samples, comprising:

performing a set of slide processing operations on the plurality of slides in one or more workstations while the slides in the plurality are held in substantially horizontal positions in a slide tray, wherein the set of slide processing operations includes at least staining and solvent-exchanging; and

transporting the slide tray holding the plurality of slides to an automated coverslipper workstation, wherein the coverslipper workstation automatically coverslips the plurality of slides held in substantially horizontal positions in the slide tray.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of slide processing operations further includes heating the plurality of slides sufficiently to adhere the biological samples to the slides.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the set of slide processing operations further includes de-paraffinizing.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein two or more slide processing operations in the set of slide processing operations are performed in the same workstation.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising transporting the slide tray to a drying oven to cure coverslips in place on the slides.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of slide processing operations further includes de-paraffinizing and both de-paraffinizing and staining are performed in the same workstation.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of slide processing operations further includes de-paraffinizing and de-paraffinizing, staining and solvent-exchanging are performed in the same workstation.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein heating comprises baking the slides with a radiant heater.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein the set of slide processing operations further includes de-paraffinizing, and heating further comprises melting paraffin in the biological samples before de-paraffinizing.

10. The method of claim 3, wherein de-paraffinizing comprises treating the slides with an aqueous detergent solution.

11. The method of claim 3, wherein de-paraffinizing comprises treating the slides with an organic solvent.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the organic solvent comprises limonene.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein staining comprises treating the slides with a hematoxylin solution and an eosin solution.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein staining comprises treating the slides with a hematoxylin solution, an Orange-G solution and an Eosin-azure solution.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein staining further comprises dehydrating the samples on the slides between treating the slides with the hematoxylin solution and treating the slides with the Orange-G and Eosin-azure solutions.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein solvent exchanging comprises treating the samples with a series of two or more different solvents or solvent mixtures.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the series of two or more different solvents or solvent mixtures comprises limonene, a limonene/alcohol mixture, alcohol, an alcohol/water mixture and water.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein a plurality of slide trays holding slides are simultaneously processed.

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising prioritizing any given slide tray, thereby completing all operations on that slide tray first.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein slide tray status is communicated to a laboratory information system.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the biological samples comprise cytological samples.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein said biological samples comprise tissue sections.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein each individual slide in the plurality is treated separately with fresh reagent during a slide processing operation that employs a reagent.

24. The method of claim 1, wherein a substantial amount of a reagent that contacts a first slide does not contact a second slide, thereby minimizing cross-contamination between slides processed by the apparatus.

25. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of slide processing operations is performed in two or more workstations and further comprising transporting the slide tray between the two or more workstations.

26. An automated method for processing a plurality of slides bearing biological samples, wherein the slides are held in substantially horizontal positions in a slide tray, comprising:

de-paraffinizing, staining and solvent exchanging the samples on the slides in the slide tray in a single modular workstation;

transporting the slide tray to an automated coverslipper; and

applying glass coverslips over the samples on the slides in the automated coverslipper.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein a substantial amount of a reagent that contacts a first slide held in the slide tray does not contact a second slide held in the slide tray, thereby minimizing cross-contamination between slides.

28. An automated method for processing a plurality of slides bearing biological samples, wherein the slides are held in substantially horizontal positions in a slide tray during processing, comprising:

(i) baking the samples under a radiant heater;

(ii) de-paraffinizing the samples;

(iii) staining the samples;

(iv) solvent-exchanging the samples; and

(v) coverslipping the samples, wherein the aforementioned steps are automatically performed by an apparatus comprising two or more workstations between which the slide tray is moved during processing.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein steps (ii) and (iii) are performed in a single workstation.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein steps (ii)-(iv) are performed in a single workstation.