Does the InsituPro VS have to be operated in a fume hood?
No, the instrument comes with a self-contained cabinet. It can be equipped with an exhaust connection if required by the user.

What is the mesh size of the net at the bottom of the baskets?
The standard mesh size is 100 µm, baskets with 55 and 35 µm mesh sizes are available for smaller specimens.

What is the temperature range for incubations?
The thermoplate for the basket work area can be cooled to 15°C (10°C lower than ambient temperature) and heated to 80°C.

How many different buffers can be used?
The work area holds up to 19 different buffer vials with 250 ml, 125 ml, 50 ml or 12 ml. Probes are stored in a separate tray.

Can precious solutions be cooled?
Yes, there are two permanently cooled positions for 50 ml falcon tubes.

What are the buffer volumes delivered by the robot?
Buffer consumption per step depends on the work area used.  The standard volumes for each are: 1600 µl for the large baskets, 700 µl for the medium baskets, 250 µl for the small baskets and 200 µl for each slide.

Is there any agitation during the incubation steps?
The InsituPro VS has a mixing function for the basket work areas. If activated, the instrument picks up half of the buffer from each cavity and dispenses it back directly, thus agitating the sample.

What is the duration of a typical protocol?
Most of the automated protocols are as long as the manual ones, which is mainly due to equally long hybridization times. A typical protocol for 96 medium sized baskets will take ~50 h, for 60 slides ~36 h. If optimized in view of time consumption, automated protocols could be remarkably shorter than their manual counterparts.

Can the specimens be treated with individual or identical probes?
Both are possible. Probes are provided either as individual aliquots from separated probe containers or as a common reagent like the antibody solution.