OBJECTIVESemen evaluation is the most important laboratory test for assessing male fertility. However, lack of strict quality control (QC) for semen analyses in hospital andrology laboratories makes it difficult and meaningless to compare semen data between different laboratories. This paper reports a comparative study on the accuracy of the Hemacytometer (Qiujing Inc., Shanghai, China), Makler (Sefi-Medical Instrument, Haifa, Israel), and Cell-VU (Millennium Sciences Inc., New York, USA) chambers for sperm counting.

METHODSBoth low [(18 +/- 2.5) x 10(6)/ml] and high [(35 +/- 5) x 10(6)/ml] pre-calibrated standard latex bead solutions (Hamilton Thorne Biosciences, USA) were used as the quality control solution to perform counts on the three different counting chambers. Bead counts for the three different chambers were compared, and variability within the chambers determined for standard solutions at low and high concentrations of latex beads, respectively.

RESULTSMean bead concentrations for the Cell-VU, Hemacytometer and Makler chambers were (37.63 +/- 4.89), (42.74 +/- 4.98) and (53.52 +/- 6.67) x 10(6)/ml respectively for a standard solution containing (35 +/- 5) x 10(6) beads/ml, and (18.22 +/- 1.77), (20.48 +/- 1.56), (24.97 +/- 4.75) x 10(6)/ml respectively for a standard solution containing (18 +/- 2.5) x 10(6) beads/ml. Mean bead concentrations for the Cell-VU chamber were consistently similar and close to the standard pre-calibrated bead solutions, while those for both the Hemacytometer and the Makler chambers were significantly overestimated (P < 0.001). The average coefficients of variation for the Cell-VU chamber were 7.51% for a higher concentration of the standard solution containing (36 +/- 5) x 10(6) beads/ml and 1.22% for a lower concentration of the standard solution containing (18 +/- 2.5) x 10(6) beads/ml, while the mean variation rates of the Hemacytometer and Makler chambers were 22.11% and 13.78% for a standard solution containing (36 +/- 5) x 10(6) beads/ml, and 52.91% and 38.72% for a standard solution containing (18 +/- 2.5) x 10(6) beads/ ml, respectively.

CONCLUSIONSemen analysis is one of the most important tests for male fertility evaluation, but the data obtained from commercially available counting chambers may differ markedly in accuracy and reliability. Results from this comparative study demonstrated that the Cell-VU chamber exhibits significantly more accurate and less variable results than those of the Hemacytometer and Makler chambers. To ensure the best possible evaluations and accurate diagnoses, we therefore recommend that Cell-VU be used as the standard counting chamber for routine semen analyses in andrology laboratories.

Blood Cell Count ; instrumentation ; Humans ; Male ; Quality Control ; Sperm Count ; instrumentation ; standards

BACKGROUND: Manual slide review (MSR) is usually triggered by the results of automated hematolgy analyzers, but each laboaratory has different ciriteria for MSR. This study was carried out to investigate the current status of MSR criteria of automated complete blood cell count (CBC) and white blood cell (WBC) differential results and to propose a basic guideline for MSR. METHODS: Total 111 laboratories were surveyed regarding MSR using questionnaires. The questionnaire asked: kinds of automated hematology analyzers used and the presence of criteria triggering MSR in seven categories: 1) CBC results, 2) 5 differential WBC counts, 3) 3 differential WBC counts, 4) automated reticulocyte counts, 5) delta check, 6) instrument flags (or messages), 7) clinical information (wards or diseases). Based on the survey results, we determined basic and extended criteria for MSR. With these criteria, we consulted nine hematology experts to get a consensus. RESULTS: All 111 laboratories had their own MSR criteria. Among 111 laboratories, 98 (88.3%) used more than three criteria for MSR including CBC results and 5-part WBC differential count results and 95 (85.6%) had criteria of flags triggering MSR. For MSR criteria with numeric values, the 10th, 50th, and 90th percentiles of upper and lower threshold values were obtained. The basic guideline for MSR was made. CONCLUSIONS: We proposed a basic guideline for MSR. This guideline would be helpful to hematology laboratories for their daily operation and providing more rapid and accurate CBC and WBC differential results.
Automation ; Blood Cell Count/instrumentation/*methods/standards ; Humans ; Laboratories, Hospital ; Leukocyte Count/instrumentation/*methods/standards ; Quality Control ; Questionnaires

Bioreactors have been central in monoclonal antibodies and vaccines manufacturing by mammalian cells in suspension culture. Numerical simulation of five impeller combinations in a stirred bioreactor was conducted, and characteristics of velocity vectors, distributions of gas hold-up, distributions of shear rate in the bioreactor using 5 impeller combinations were numerically elucidated. In addition, genetically engineered CHO cells were cultivated in bioreactor installed with 5 different impeller combinations in fed-batch culture mode. The cell growth and antibody level were directly related to the maximum shear rate in the bioreactor, and the highest viable cell density and the peak antibody level were achieved in FBMI3 impeller combination, indicating that CHO cells are sensitive to shear force produced by impeller movement when cells were cultivated in bioreactor at large scale, and the maximum shear rate would play key roles in scaling-up of bioreactor at industrial scale.
Animals ; Batch Cell Culture Techniques ; Bioreactors ; standards ; CHO Cells ; Cell Count ; Computer Simulation ; Cricetinae ; Cricetulus ; Industrial Microbiology ; instrumentation ; methods

No abstract available.
Antigens, CD34/*metabolism ; Automation ; Blood Cells/*cytology/metabolism ; Cell Count/*instrumentation/standards ; Flow Cytometry/standards ; Hematopoietic Stem Cells/*cytology/metabolism ; Humans