A method to measure the volume of fluid present that relies on the pattern of light refraction as it passes though an airway surface liquid (ASL) meniscus. The method comprises allowing epithelial cells to grow on a membrane in a well so as to form a fluid meniscus about the perimeter of the well. The well is then illuminated by a light source. The illuminated cells in the well are then optically imaged by a scanner, a flat bed optical scanner, a camera, or any device capable of imaging. Microscopy may be used but is not needed, and high powered microscopy is certainly not needed. Then the imaging information from the cells in the well is used to determine a property of the meniscus in the well. Specifically, the imaging information can be analyzed to determine the dimensions, shape, and/or volume of the meniscus and the fluid in the well.

In a sample analyzing apparatus, an injector assembly injects a reagent onto a sample, and luminescent light from the sample is transmitted to a detector. The assembly may be movable toward and away from the sample. The assembly may include one or more needles that communicate with one or more reservoirs supplying reagent or other liquids. The assembly may include a light guide for communicating with the detector. A cartridge may be provided in which the assembly, one or more reservoirs, and one or more pumps are disposed. The cartridge and/or the apparatus may be configured for enabling rinsing or priming to be done outside the apparatus. The cartridge and/or the apparatus may include one or more types of sensors configured for detecting, for example, the presence of liquid or bubbles in one or more locations of the apparatus and/or the cartridge.

This disclosure relates to hematoxylin staining formulations and particularly to formulations for use in autostainers. The disclosed compositions were discovered to possess atypical stability under storage while having high stain quality and sufficiently fast staining performance. The disclosed hematoxylin staining compositions include a solvent system, hematoxylin, a chemical oxidant, and a mordant. Illustrative embodiments also have a Cl.sup.−/SO.sub.4.sup.− molar ratio of between about 2.5/1 and about 1/4.

A microplate reader includes a plurality of sets of: a light emitting portion disposed on one side of a microplate and corresponding to one well of the microplate; a light receiving portion disposed on an opposite side to the light emitting portion across the microplate and corresponding to one well of the microplate; and a light receiving light guide path disposed between the light receiving portion and the microplate and guiding light emitted from the light emitting portion and passing through a sample contained in the well to the light receiving portion. The microplate reader further includes a light guiding section configured to enclose a plurality of the light receiving light guide paths by an enclosure member made of a pigment-containing resin containing a pigment having a light-absorbing property. Light emitted from one light emitting portion passing through one light receiving light guide path and reaching one light receiving portion.

A spectrometer (1) comprises a light source (2), a monochromator (3) with at least one diffraction grating (4), a monochromator housing (5), an order sorting filter (7), a microplate receptacle (12) and a controller (6). The order sorting filter (7) of the spectrometer (1) comprises a substrate (23), a first optical thin film (24) and a second optical thin film (25), wherein, in a spatially partly overlapping and interference-free manner, the first optical thin film (24) is arranged on a first surface (26) and the second optical thin film (25) is arranged on a second surface (27) of the substrate (23). A spectrometer (1) equipped with a respective order sorting filter is used in a scanning method for detecting the absorption spectrum of samples examined in wells (14) of microplates (13).

Under one aspect, a device is provided for use in luminescent imaging. The device can include a photonic superlattice including a first material, the first material having a first refractive index. The first material can include first and second major surfaces and first and second pluralities of features defined though at least one of the first and second major surfaces, the features of the first plurality differing in at least one characteristic from the features of the second plurality. The photonic superlattice can support propagation of a first wavelength and a second wavelength approximately at a first angle out of the photonic superlattice, the first and second wavelengths being separated from one another by a first non-propagating wavelength that does not selectively propagate at the first angle out of the photonic superlattice. The device further can include a second material having a second refractive index that is different than the first refractive index. The second material can be disposed within, between, or over the first and second pluralities of features and can include first and second luminophores. The device further can include a first optical component disposed over one of the first and second major surfaces of the first material. The first optical component can receive luminescence emitted by the first luminophore at the first wavelength approximately at the first angle, and can receive luminescence emitted by the second luminophore at the second wavelength approximately at the first angle.

A system and method for analyzing a biomarker in a biological sample is provided. A biological sample is loaded onto a microchip and an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay specific to the biomarker is performed on the microchip. A color image of the microchip is generated using a mobile device and a color intensity of a selected portion of the color image is determined. The color intensity is correlated with a biomarker concentration using a baseline curve calculation and the concentration of the biomarker is then reported.

The invention relates to a carrier with a binding surface at which target components that comprise label particles, for example magnetic particles, can collect and optionally bind to specific capture elements. An input light beam (L1) is transmitted into the carrier and totally internally reflected at the binding surface. The amount of light in the output light beam (L2) and optionally also of fluorescence light emitted by target components at the binding surface is then detected by a light detector. Evanescent light generated during the total internal reflection is affected (absorbed, scattered) by target components and/or label particles at the binding surface and will therefore be missing in the output light beam (L2). This can be used to determine the amount of target components at the binding surface from the amount of light in the output light beam (L2, L2a, L2b). A magnetic field generator is optionally used to generate a magnetic field (B) at the binding surface by which magnetic label particles can be manipulated, for example attracted or repelled.

A microstructured chip (3; 33; 43; 53; 63) for surface plasmon resonance (SPR) analysis, taking the form of a solid formed by: a base (5; 77); an upper surface (4; 44), at least part of which is covered with a metal layer (2; 22; 42; 52; 62); and at least one side surface (55; 66). The chip is characterized in that the aforementioned upper surface is provided with micrometric zones intended to receive species to be analyzed and selected from among n protrusions and m cavities, and in that when n+m≧2 the zones are separated from one another by planar surfaces, with n varying between 1 and j, m varying between 0 and i, and j and i being integers.

In one aspect of the present disclosure an optical measurement device includes a sample holder defining a sample plane, wherein the sample holder is configured to arrange a sample carrier including an array of measurement positions in the sample plane, an illumination unit configured to illuminate the sample plane, a detector and an optical imaging system configured to image the sample plane including the array of measurement positions onto the detector, the optical imaging system including two or more curved reflective elements adapted to image the sample plane onto the detector with a magnification of between 2:1 and 1:2 and the detector being configured to take an image of all measurement positions of the array of measurement positions at a time.