Scheduling Instrument Time
Use of the flow cytometers and requests for core services must be entered on the Order Tracking webpage (the same system used for the other core laboratories). Registration insures proper account identification for billing purposes, identification of the principle investigator and identification of the person requesting service. The flow cytometry order tracking webpage may be accessed at:
Requesting Core services for sample analysis or cell sorting:
1) Enter your request for service at least 24 hours in advance. This will allow us time to arrange our schedule for the next day and to know the types of applications for which we have to prepare the instruments. If you require services that will extend later than 5:30 pm please make your request several days in advance so that lab staff can, if possible, rearrange personal schedules to accommodate your request.
2) In the Comments Box of the scheduling webpage indicate what type of analysis/service you want. Indicate how many samples (tubes) you will have and what they are stained with (ex. 10 tubes FITC and PE stained or 10 tubes PI stained for DNA analysis) and for cell sorting note any special instrument configuration required. For cell sorting the basic instrument configuration is considered single laser (i.e. the argon 488 nm laser) at room temperature with sorted cells collected in 10 x 75 mm tubes. If you need additional lasers, temperature control or sorting into microtiter plates you must let us know when your original request is made. This is the only way we will know what you want done and what special instrument configuration is needed.
3) If you are unsure of the amount of time to reserve, plan on about 2 min/tube for immunophenotyping and about 5 min/tube for DNA/cell cycle analysis.
4) In addition to your experimental controls, be sure to include: Instrument Controls for the cytometer (i.e. unstained cells and cells stained with an isotype control or mock-transfected cells) and Compensation Controls if you are using two or more fluorochromes together. Compensation controls are cells stained singly with each fluorochrome to enable us to correct for spillover of one fluorochrome into the detection channel of another fluorochrome.
How the Order Tracking webpage works:
1) The Order Tracking webpage displays a day-planner style page which shows reserved time periods between 9:00 am and 7:00 pm Monday through Friday. The entry indicates the name of the person who made the reservation and their telephone number. After selecting a start time for a specific instrument, one is presented with a series of windows which ask for the duration of use, type of service and billing information for that reservation.
2) For after hours and/or weekend use the user must first be checked out and approved for independent instrument use by core personnel. Only after this is done will the user be granted clearance to schedule "after hours" time and their university ID card validated in the Logiplex Security System to open the FACScan Lab (603 Wintrobe).
3) All instrument use must be entered on the schedule webpage, even for evening or weekend use. The software will allow you to enter your instrument reservation after the fact so it is possible to make your entry after you finish running your samples. Warning: If you do not enter your usage it will require core personnel to create an entry and then go into the billing software and edit the information to indicate the user, PI and charge the proper account. If we have to do this we will charge you an extra half hour of instrument time for the inconvenience. Furthermore, we cannot guarantee we will have charged your use to the correct account (if you lab has more than one active account).
Cancellation and billing policy:
1) FACScan use may be canceled without penalty before 10:00 am the day of the reservation. If you cancel after 10:00 am you will be charged for the time unless someone else reserves the same time slot latter in the day.
2) FACSVantage use must be cancelled by the end of the working day prior to your appointment. Again, you will be charged for the time unless someone else reserves it after your cancellation.
3) All users will be billed for the time reserved or the actual time of use whichever is greater!