A method for analyzing a sample collected from a surface, the method comprising placing at least a portion of a substrate having a pressure sensitive adhesive layer containing the sample in a holder, adding a spray solvent to the sample-containing pressure sensitive adhesive layer, and analyzing the sample contained in the pressure sensitive adhesive layer and the spray solvent using paper spray mass spectrometry.

Disclosed is a container transfer method for transferring a container from a container holder capable of holding a plurality of containers, by using a holding section capable of performing an opening/closing operation, vertical movement, and horizontal movement. The method includes: moving the holding section downward to a position lower than a head portion of the container, at a position where the container is not held in a plan view; horizontally moving the holding section in an opened state, toward a target container on the container holder; after the horizontal movement of the holding section to the target container, closing the holding section with respect to the target container; and moving upward the holding section in a closed state.

Condensation associated with the collection and identification of airborne particles is detected. Upon the detection, one or more condensation countermeasures are triggered to address the condensation.

Systems and methods for automated laser microdissection are disclosed including automatic slide detection, position detection of cutting and capture lasers, focus optimization for cutting and capture lasers, energy and duration optimization for cutting and capture lasers, inspection and second phase capture and/or ablation in a quality control station and tracking information for linking substrate carrier or output microdissected regions with input sample or slide.

Methods and techniques for controlled printing of a cell sample for karyotyping are provided. The methods can involve matrix printing using on-the-fly printing or dispensing to accurately spread cells within at least one cell sample on a surface in preparation for karyotyping, and further analysis. Advantageously, the methods result in a uniform distribution of chromosomes of the cell suspension or sample on the surface of a substrate which can be substantially discretely identified, and also provide for efficiency in a subsequent staining process and any further analysis of the stained chromosomes using a microscope or other imaging device.

A method includes introducing a fluidic sample into the void volume and onto the surface of a porous material, bringing the porous material into contact with a hydrophilic substrate compatible with a cryogenic Transmission Electron Microscope, separating the porous material from the substrate, and transferring a portion of the sample from the porous material to the substrate between their contact and separation.

Devices, systems, and methods for imaging samples. In some examples, a device includes at least two basins for holding a liquid medium, the at least two basins including a sample chamber and a reservoir. The device includes a wedge between the sample chamber and the reservoir, and the wedge protrudes into the sample chamber and defines a space between the wedge and a bottom of the sample chamber. The space is sized for holding one or more biological samples. The device is formed to define a flow channel between the sample chamber and the reservoir, and the flow channel is shaped to allow the passage of the liquid medium from the sample chamber and the reservoir and to block passage of the one or more biological samples between the sample chamber and the reservoir.

A method is proposed for generating a series of ultra-thin sections of a microscopic sample (10), wherein the sections (11) are detached from the sample (10) using an ultramicrotome (100) and wherein the sections (11), which are detached from the sample (10) are caused to float on a liquid surface and are thereafter transferred onto a solid carrier element (20). For at least for some of the sections (11) detached from the sample (10) a position and an orientation on the solid carrier element (20) are determined by monitoring the placement of these sections (11) onto the solid carrier element (20) using a monitoring system (400) comprising a camera (410), obtaining monitoring data. A method (2000) for the three-dimensional reconstruction of a microscopic sample (10), a microtome system and a computer program are also part of the present invention.

A sample processing system and method, and a control system and a cell image analysis device. A smear preparation device prepares a sample smear, the cell image analysis device performs imaging and analysis on the sample smear, and the sample smear is placed in a first smear storage device. After the sample smear is placed in the first smear storage device, the first smear storage device placed with the sample smear is conveyed by a conveyer from the smear preparation device to the cell image analysis device, and the first smear storage device is conveyed by the conveyer from the cell image analysis device to the smear preparation device, so that automatic cycle conveying of the first smear storage device between the smear preparation device and the cell image analysis device is achieved by the conveyer, and unnecessary human-machine interaction operations are reduced, thereby reducing workload of a user.

The present invention is a specimen preparation method of preparing an observation specimen by placing an observation object on a light transmitting plate, comprising a conveyance step of conveying the observation object by a conveyance mechanism including a placement portion configured to place the observation object, and a transfer step of transferring the observation object from the placement portion of the conveyance mechanism onto the plate at a conveyance terminal end of the conveyance mechanism, wherein in the transfer step, a liquid is supplied to the placement portion on which the observation object is placed, and the observation object is carried by a flow of the liquid and transferred onto the plate.