Building a Solid Foundation for Robust Research: The Key to Contamination Prevention in CO₂ Incubators

Every scientist who works with cultured tissue cells struggles with contamination. It is a very common occurrence for contamination to result from human activity, since humans carry, on average, 10,000 microorganisms per centimeter of skin.¹ Indoor air serves as a primary source of contamination in most laboratory settings.¹To help ensure the integrity of cell cultures, it is essential to invest in a CO₂ incubator design that incorporates trusted and effective continuous contamination control. These may include:

In-chamber HEPA filtration – Enables the capture of particles of all sizes. By establishing ISO Class 5 conditions within approximately five minutes of a 30-second door opening, this filtration system helps provide an added layer of protection against microorganisms which can enter any incubator each time the door is opened. Additionally, the filter’s infrequent replacement requirement, once per year, helps minimize maintenance efforts.
Copper interior chamber – The choice of chamber material plays a pivotal role in helping prevent contamination. Opting for a CO₂ incubator with a 100% pure copper chamber is highly effective and remarkably easy to maintain. A contamination strategy can be simplified by taking advantage of the natural benefits copper provides.
Avoid UV-light – While ultraviolet (UV) light is commonly used as a disinfectant strategy, it is not suitable for CO₂ incubators due to the elevated humidity levels. The presence of high amounts of water vapor in the incubator environment hampers the efficacy of UV light in eradicating pollutants, because the water vapor in humidity above about 70% blocks the UV rays.

These tips and more are explored in the webinar, “Exploring and Preventing Culture Contamination.” During this presentation, our Senior Global Applications Scientist Mary Kay Bates delves into the intricacies of maintaining environments free from unwanted impurities, equipping you with practical tips and strategies to enhance your prevention efforts.

By understanding the various sources of contamination and which measures will be most effective, laboratory professionals can avoid this all-to-common challenge before it becomes a headache.

For more, watch the webinar Exploring and Preventing Culture Contamination.

References:

Loomis, K.H., Wu, S.K., Ernlund, A. et al. A mixed community of skin microbiome representatives influences cutaneous processes more than individual members. Microbiome 9, 22 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40168-020-00963-1

Watch our webinar for more: Exploring and Preventing Culture Contamination

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