Dako Autostainer - Manual (Page 17)

Dako Autostainer | User Guide 17
Section 4 | Typical Operation
A few “off instrument” preparations will make the staining run more time-efficient. Prior to starting a
run you should have the following items:
• A list of slide cases to be run with requested protocols.
• Deparaffinized and rehydrated slides soaking in buffer. This buffer should contain 0.05%
Tween 20. A minimum of 5 minutes soaking time is recommended.
• The reagents required for the staining run brought to room temperature.
• Sufficient buffer in the buffer reservoir and deionized water in the deionized water reservoir.
The buffer should contain 0.05% Tween 20. (Deionized water is not available with the “01”
hardware version of the Dako Autostainer).
• Containers for hazardous and non-hazardous waste with enough capacity to accommodate
the waste from the staining run.
A typical set up for a staining run follows this order:
1. Start the software by double clicking on the Dako Autostainer icon.
2. Enter your user name and password. (See Accessing the Dako Autostainer Software,
Section 6)
3. Select the PROGRAM button on the Main Menu screen.
4. Select the SLIDE INFO button from the Programming Grid, or Slides from the menu bar.
When the SLIDE INFO button is selected the SLIDE INFORMATION screen is displayed.
When the Slides menu item is selected the SLIDE COUNT window is displayed.
5. Enter slide information or slide count for the staining run. (See Entering Slide Information,
Section 8)
6. Select the FINISH ENTRY button when entering slide information or select OK when
using SLIDE COUNT window. The Programming Grid is displayed with the slide
information.
7. Select the PROTOCOL TEMPLATE button. The PROTOCOL TEMPLATE DESIGN
screen is displayed.
8. Select the protocol template for the run. (See Designing a Protocol, Section 9)
9. Select the USE TEMPLATE button. The Programming Grid is displayed with the selected
protocol.
NOTE: Steps 7 through 9 can be skipped if the default template is used.
10. Assign specific reagents to all slides. (See Programming Slides, Section 10)
11. Select the NEXT button. The SLIDE LAYOUT MAP:PROGRAM SLIDES screen is
displayed. Select the PRINT button to print the Slide Layout Map.
12. Select the NEXT button the RUN TIME screen is displayed. The Autostainer calculates
the run time and amount of buffer and DI water needed to complete the run.
13. Select the OK button. The user is prompted to “Save program on disk”.
Selecting YES displays the SAVE PROGRAM ON DISK window. Enter the program’s
name and select OK. The program is saved and the REAGENT LAYOUT MAP screen is
displayed.
Selecting NO displays the REAGENT LAYOUT MAP screen and the program is not
saved.