[NHCOLL-L:5025] Re: Labeling frozen, ethanol and nitrogen tissue tubes

Sat Oct 23 17:05:03 EDT 2010

HI Kirsten and NH Coll (look, I am actually providing a summary Greg!):
We actually do put barcode labels on our tissues now, so once they get
cataloged or after we write on them in the field, we add a barcode sticker
that can stand up to liquid nitrogen temperatures and then we associate that
barcode with the cataloged specimen in our database. So this is more
permanent. We could put a number inside, and some of our researchers do, but
yes, it is very inconvenient later when you are trying to identify tubes,
plus you have to be careful and use sterile techniques when pulling the
label out. And some use an engraving pen in the field, but not all of our
researchers, plus the barcode covers the engraving.
We send tubes with subsamples out on loan, and these tubes are labeled with
pens, thus why we still need the ethanol-proof pens.

I did get a number of great responses last time (thanks everyone), from
folks that use pens, markers, labels, or etch on the vials (some of our
researchers also etch the vials, in addition to marking them in the field).
Here is a summary of the responses I received:

1) Other Pens:
 I haven't found anything perfect yet, but did find something much better
you
might want to check out. Diversified Biotech (divbio.com) has a solvent
resistant pen, cat. No. 122 Black, which appears to be much more resistant
to ethanol exposure than the VWR pens. I poured lots of ethanol (95%) over a
labeled tube, and while the VWR pen immediately bled badly, the DB pen ink
stayed almost completely intact. One caveat: neither can take a combination
of ethanol AND rubbing, which takes the ink right off. But I think we can
realistically avoid that combination of stresses in essentially all lab and
field conditions. If the ethanol dries, the ink again becomes very resistant
to rubbing, so there is no "permanent" effect of exposure to ethanol that I
can see right now.

2)  2-D barcodes:
For our tissues and DNA's we're heavily invested in the 2-D barcoded tubes
in 96well format (we buy from Matrix) - they are impervious to all freezer
conditions, won't rub off with anything short of a file/rasp and are immune
to human error (insofar as applying or reading the label).

They do have a couple minor drawbacks:
1. slightly smaller size (both diameter and volume)
2. only machine readable

We don't think for our volume and future that these are serious limitations.
We take a handheld scanner and laptop with us for all the field work, and
scan the tube directly into a spreadsheet  upon placing tissues in (or we
can pre-scan whole racks prior to field, and only verify in field when
necessary with the hand-held).
Our biorepository of the future will have no problems locating a specimen
and doing a quick check of the 2-D barcode (scanner nearby, or by then, even
a cell phone, ipod, palm device on hip of the repository tech to verify...

There will always be occasions to revert to "old-school" - we still do it
frequently, but we should not necessarily continue what we grew up with
(particularly if it has known limitations or problems that we can now
overcome) just because.

3) Other labels:
We have now gone across to a hand held, battery operated (or AC) Brady
Labpal unit:

http://www.bradyid.com/bradyid/pfv/100453%2B4294966631/BRADYID_US_LABPAL/Lab
oratory/Labels/LABPAL-Labeling-Tool/Products.html<http://www.bradyid.com/bradyid/pfv/100453%2B4294966631/BRADYID_US_LABPAL/Laboratory/Labels/LABPAL-Labeling-Tool/Products.html>

The unit is very portable and can be used in the field too.  They sell a
large range of labeling media for this which includes media that will
withstand liquid nitrogen, -80 and ethanol:

http://www.bradyid.com/bradyid/pbv/100777%2B4294966631%2B4294924875/280050/0
/~0/~0/~0/Laboratory/Labels/Laboratory-Labels.html<http://www.bradyid.com/bradyid/pbv/100777%2B4294966631%2B4294924875/280050/0/%7E0/%7E0/%7E0/Laboratory/Labels/Laboratory-Labels.html>

They also sell continuous feed versions of the Labpal cartridges that can be
used in a thermal transfer printer.  We have been very happy with this
system and although all our tissue are presently in -80 we will also
hopefully be changing across to liquid nitrogen in the future (NSF willing).

4) Labels inside plus pencil outside:
We are using cryo vials with the ethanol storage tissues and have found a
'belts & braces' approach seems to be working well. A 2B pencil will write
well on the frosted section of the vial and we back that up by putting a
slip of label paper with the same number on inside. Then we print out a
Tissue label with the number, identification etc. which goes in & positioned
so it can be read through the vial window

5) Engravers:
We use an electric engraver to "carve" the numbers into the vial on the
little white area where you usually write with a marker.....very fool
proof......they are easy to use and inexpensive to purchase. You can go over
the engraved number with a marker if you want to.....but it is easy to read
without doing so.  We have a couple laying around our dept and one at our
field station where we prep our mammals.  We bought them at Sears, Craftsman
Brand, about $15 bucks each. In the field, when we do not have electricity,
we buy the diamond tip scribes that are about the size of a pen.....then
scratch the number into the vial.  Both work well and numbers NEVER rub off!

6) Using labeled bags instead of tubes:
It is interesting that after years of storing tissue samples, we (the
molecular community and others who keep tissue samples) still struggle with
labelling tissue vials.  In recent times we have been using 2 ml cryo vials
(Greiner Bio-One), particularly when sending samples to researchers.  The
Staedtler Lumocolor pen supplied with the vials, does write easily on the
vials, however the ink is soluble and thus easily removed by ethanol.  Our
solution is to use a HB pencil, as Andy Bentley mentioned in his response to
your email.  By the way, I have no experience with the Brady Labpal unit
that he refers to.

We generally do not use cryo vials for our long-term tissue storage.  We
have approximately 10,000 fish muscle samples, which we have accumulated
since 1994.  I am hesitant about using cryo vials for long-term sample
storage because:

1. the vials are small, thus only a small sample can be kept - we like to
keep large samples (where possible), to allow for multiple sub-sampling;
2. of concerns with permanency of the pen/pencil used in labelling; &
3. of concerns about relying on only a sample number to identify the sample
within the vial.

Due to these concerns, we almost exclusively use small snaplock plastic bags
(50 x 75 mm) for our muscle sample storage in our minus 80 C freezer.  The
advantages of the bags over the vials are twofold.  One, we can collect a
large muscle sample, which allows for multiple sub-sampling.  Two, we can
include a label with more information (such as species name, specimen
registration number) than just the sample number, which allows
cross-referencing in case someone miswrites the sample number.  The major
disadvantage of the plastic bags is that our minus 80 C freezer is full of
plastic bags, which is probably not the most economical use of our storage.

On Sat, Oct 23, 2010 at 6:17 AM, Kirsten Nicholson <norops at gmail.com> wrote:

> Good info, I'm always looking for better instruments for this sort of
> thing; thanks for sharing, Carol!
>
> I'm coming late to this conversation, but I'm wondering about two things.
> One is, why not put labels inside the tubes instead of writing on the
> outside where there is the risk of rubbing off or coming off altogether? Its
> slightly more work, but the payoff is tremendous in terms of being sure of
> which tube has what inside.
>
> The other is, I find it incredible that somebody hasn't produced a better
> system for this given that so many of us are faced with this problem of
> labeling tubes *permanently*.  I've seen ads for label makers that print
> labels out for tubes, but have not tried them, and generally these are not
> practical in the field, but might be useful once back in the lab.  Do you or
> does anyone out there have experience with these labeling machines for the
> lab?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Kirsten
> --
> Kirsten E. Nicholson, Ph.D
>
> Asst. Prof. Biology
> Dept. of Biology
> 217 Brooks Hall
> Central Michigan Univ.
> Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859
> 989-774-3758
>
> and
>
> Curator of Natural History
> Museum of Cultural and Natural History
> 103 Rowe Hall
> Central Michigan University
> Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859
> 989-774-3829
>
> On Fri, Oct 22, 2010 at 6:24 PM, Carol Spencer <atrox10 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi NH-Coll:
>>
>> Awhile ago I requested information from researchers about pens/markers to
>> be used for writing on cryotubes for ethanol, frozen, or liquid nitrogen
>> usage. Since that time we at MVZ have gone through a couple of marker types
>> and seem to have found one that works well in all types of fluid.
>>
>> This is the VWR Histology Chemical-Resistant Marker, see information
>> below.
>>
>> Previously VWR had changed their formula and their markers were not
>> working, so we switched to the Moist-Mark Cancer Diagnostics Pen (
>> http://www.labsafety.com/Moist-Mark-Plus-Pen_s_141667/Label-Accessories_24541186/).
>> This Moist-mark pen is very good with frozen or nitrogen tubes, BUT it will
>> run when used with ethanol or other chemicals, especially when used on tubes
>> that are very smooth and do not have a white area for writing. Since we keep
>> our tubes in -80C, switching to liquid nitrogen, and we also use them when
>> sending loans of tissue in 95% ethanol, we needed to mark with ink that will
>> not come off in all situations.
>>
>> When using the VWR marker, you should still allow the writing to dry
>> completely (several minutes) before put any ethanol or other liquid into the
>> tube.  If you rub the writing a lot, it will fade a bit, but overall this
>> pen seems to work the most consistently.
>> Thanks,
>> Carol
>>
>> VWR® Chemical-Resistant Marker *Supplier:* VWR International
>>     * *  [image: VWR® Chemical-Resistant Marker]<https://www.vwrsp.com/catjpg/081/081631.jpg>
>>
>> Precision ultrafine tip permanently marks slides and cassettes. Ink is
>> waterproof, smearproof, odorless, and resistant to most chemicals, including
>> alcohol, formalin, and xylene. Color: black.
>>   * *
>>   [image: View Shopping Basket]<https://www.vwrsp.com/myvwr/sb/index.cgi>
>> *Description*   *VWR Catalog#*   *Unit*   *Price*   *Quantity*    VWRHISTOLOGY
>> MARKER PK12   95042-566   Pack of 12   $55.70        Please verify that
>> you have logged in. This item is restricted for purchase to customers with
>> an established account and the proper documentation on file. If you are
>> logged in and believe you should have access to this item, please contact us
>> for additional help at 1-888-320-4357.    [image: View Shopping Basket]<https://www.vwrsp.com/myvwr/sb/index.cgi>
>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Carol L. Spencer, Ph.D.
>> Staff Curator of Herpetology & Researcher
>> Museum of Vertebrate Zoology
>> 3101 Valley Life Sciences Building
>> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA 94720-3160
>> atrox10 at gmail.com
>> atrox at berkeley.edu
>> TEL: 510-643-5778 /FAX: 510-643-8238
>>
>> http://www.herpnet.org
>> http://mvz.berkeley.edu/
>> http://www.vertnet.org
>>
>
>
>
>
>
>

-- 
Carol L. Spencer, Ph.D.
Staff Curator of Herpetology & Researcher
Museum of Vertebrate Zoology
3101 Valley Life Sciences Building
University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA 94720-3160
atrox10 at gmail.com
atrox at berkeley.edu
TEL: 510-643-5778 /FAX: 510-643-8238

http://www.herpnet.org
http://mvz.berkeley.edu/
http://www.vertnet.org
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