Focus on Laboratory Equipment

Standardization of laboratory equipment.

Diagnostic equipment outside the laboratory.

A questionnaire was circulated to clinical biochemistry laboratories in the North West Thames region of the United Kingdom requesting information on extralaboratory equipment. Data on the types and numbers of instruments in use, their relationship with the laboratory, and quality assurance procedures were obtained. Laboratories were prepared to maintain equipment over which they had no responsi...

Thyroglobulin measurement by highly sensitive assays: focus on laboratory challenges.

Differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) is the most common endocrine cancer and its incidence has increased in recent decades. The initial treatment consists of total thyroidectomy followed by ablation of thyroid remnants by radioiodine in most cases. As thyroid cells are the only source of thyroglobulin (Tg), circulating Tg serves as a biochemical marker of persistent or recurrent disease in the f...

A laboratory nanoseismological study on deep-focus earthquake micromechanics

Global earthquake occurring rate displays an exponential decay down to ~300 km and then peaks around 550 to 600 km before terminating abruptly near 700 km. How fractures initiate, nucleate, and propagate at these depths remains one of the greatest puzzles in earth science, as increasing pressure inhibits fracture propagation. We report nanoseismological analysis on high-resolution acoustic emis...

The Indiana laboratory system: focus on environmental laboratories.

The Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) Laboratories are working to improve Indiana's state public health laboratory system. Environmental laboratories are key stakeholders in this system, but their needs have been largely unaddressed prior to this project. In an effort to identify and engage these laboratories, the ISDH Laboratories organized and hosted the First Annual Environmental Lab...