JPS582377B2 - Datsushiyokusouchi - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an apparatus for staining and decolorizing a support in an electrophoresis apparatus.

When conducting a clinical test for serum proteins using electrophoresis, the serum sample is applied onto a support such as cellulose acetate paper, and then electricity is applied in an electrophoresis box to produce a partial image. It is used for colorimetric determination.

In this case, the sample subjected to electrophoresis is stained with a staining solution and further decolored with a decolorizing solution, thereby staining only the sample and completely decolorizing the rest of the support before performing colorimetric determination. It is something.

Conventionally, all steps of the electrophoresis method, including the staining and decolorization steps, were performed manually.

This made it extremely inefficient.

For the reasons mentioned above, recent efforts have been made to automate each step in electrophoresis.

In the automation of this electrophoresis method, both the dyeing and decolorizing steps are carried out by immersing the support in the electrophoresis box, which has been energized, in a dyeing solution and decolorizing solution sequentially using an appropriate transport mechanism and moving it to the next step. However, when sending the support into the solution to soak it in each solution, or when transferring the support after dyeing to the next process, it is necessary to move the support through the solution. This is actually a difficult task due to the nature of the support.

In view of the above points, the present invention moves the support to a predetermined position using a conveyance mechanism and stops the support, and then moves the dye tank containing the dye solution or the decolorization tank containing the dye solution to the predetermined position where the support is located. The present invention provides an apparatus for staining and decolorizing a support in an electrophoresis apparatus, in which the support is moved to a position where the support is immersed in a liquid.

The detailed content of the present invention will be explained below based on the drawings.
In Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, 1 is the supporting column 2, 2'...
A vertically movable table 3 supported so as to be able to move up and down against ... is rotated by a motor 4 on an eccentric disk that is in contact with the lower surface of the vertically movable table.

However, due to the rotation of this eccentric disk, the surface in contact with the lower surface of the vertical movable table 1 moves up and down, so that the vertical movable table 1 moves up and down.

5 is a cover, 6 is an upper limit switch fixed at an appropriate position on the cover 5, and 7 is a lower limit switch.

Reference numeral 10 denotes a moving table configured to move in the lateral direction of the drawing along the shaft 11, 12 is a staining liquid tank, and 13 is a decoloring liquid tank, and these tanks can be arranged as appropriate as partially shown in the drawing. It is supported at a fixed position on the movable table 10 by a structural support member.

14 is a decolorization tank swinging mechanism driven by a motor 15; 16 is a rack fixed to one side of the moving platform 10; 17 is a pinion that engages with the rack 16;
8 is a motor that rotates the pinion 17, and 19 is a microswitch.

Therefore, the rotation of the motor 18 causes the movable table 10 to move in the direction along the shaft 11.

20 is a support conveyance mechanism, 21 is two mounting plates supported by the tip 5a of the cover 5 as shown in FIG.
23, 24, 25, 26 and 27 are drive rollers 23', 24', 25', 26' and 27 fixed by respective shafts rotatably attached to the mounting plate 21;
' are respective driven rollers held in the same way, and each of these rollers is connected to a gear fixed to the shaft of each of the driving rollers 23, 24, etc., and an appropriate connecting means (not shown) such as a chain hung on the gear. are connected to each other so that they can rotate at the same time.

These connecting means, such as chains, are driven by appropriate driving means, whereby the rollers are rotated at the same time.

Further, 29 is a microswitch fixed to the bottom surface of the lid 28.

Next, the operation of the dyeing and decolorizing apparatus of the present invention having the structure explained above will be explained.

First, lower the vertical movable table 1 and remove the staining liquid tank 12 and the decolorizing liquid tank 1.
3 is positioned below the transport mechanism 20.

When electrophoresis, which is a step before the staining and decolorization steps, is completed, the support is transported out of the electrophoresis box by an appropriate transport means.

At the same time, if the rollers 23, 24, . and driven roller 23' into the apparatus of the invention, and are advanced in turn by each of the other rollers 24, 24', .

The tip of the support 30 is the contact piece 29a of the microswitch 29
When pressed, the operation of the drive means is stopped by the action of this microswitch 29.

That is, since each drive roller 23, 24, 25, . . . is also stopped, the support body 30 is stopped at that position.

At the same time, the motor 4 rotates, and the eccentric disk 3 is rotated accordingly, so that the vertical movement table 1 is moved to the support columns 2, 2', . . .
gradually rises along the

When the upper surface of the movable base 10 reaches the upper limit switch 6 position due to the rise of the vertical movable base 1, the motor 4 is stopped by the action of the upper limit switch 6, and the vertical movable base 1 is stopped at this position. Retained.

At this time, if the moving table 10 is set so that the dye liquid tank 12 is just below the transport mechanism 20, each roller 23, 23', . . . of the transport mechanism 20, as is clear from FIG.
Most of the support body 30 held by these rollers is immersed in the dyeing solution in the dyeing solution tank 12 (in the figure, it is shown located in the decolorizing solution tank 12, but it is exactly the same). It is dyed with liquid.

After staining for a certain period of time, the motor 4 is rotated again by a timer or the like to lower the vertical movement table.

When this lowering causes the vertically movable table 1 to actuate the lower limit switch 7, the motor 4 is stopped again.

At the same time, the motor 18 rotates, and the moving table 10 moves along the shaft 11 as described above.

As a result, the staining liquid tank 12 that has been located below the conveyance mechanism 20 is moved to another location, and the decoloring liquid tank 13 is replaced by the dyeing liquid tank 12.
comes to be below the transport mechanism 20.

In this way, when the decolorizing liquid tank 13 comes just below the conveyance mechanism 20, the rotation of the motor 15 is stopped by the action of the microswitch, while the motor 4 starts rotating.

The rotation of the motor 4 causes the vertically movable table 1 to rise in the same manner as described above, and when it has risen until the support held by the transport mechanism 20 is immersed in the decolorizing liquid, it is stopped by the action of the upper limit switch 6.

Furthermore, the rotation of the motor 15 causes the swinging mechanism 14 to operate, and the decolorizing liquid tank 13 swings about the axis indicated by reference numeral A in FIG.

After the decoloring action has been carried out for a certain period of time in this way, the decolorizing liquid contaminated with the staining liquid is removed by an appropriate means, and a new decolorizing liquid is injected into the decolorizing liquid tank and the decoloring operation is repeated in the same way. .

After repeating this decolorization process about 5 times and completely decolorizing the parts of the support other than the part where the serum is present,
As the motor 4 rotates again, the vertical movable table 1 is lowered to a predetermined position where the lower limit switch 7 is located.

Furthermore, each roller 23, 24,...
... is rotated and the support body 30 is moved to the next step.

Simultaneously with this movement of the support or after the support has finished moving, the motor 18 drives the moving platform 10 to move to the left in FIG. At this point, the left end of the moving table 10 activates the switch 19, and the movement of the switch 19 causes it to stop.

By repeating each operation up to this point, each support that has undergone electrophoresis successively undergoes the steps of dyeing and decolorizing, and automatically proceeds to the next step of drying and transparentizing.

As explained above, in the dyeing and decolorizing apparatus of the present invention, the dyeing liquid tank and the decolorizing liquid tank are alternately moved to the position of the transport mechanism, and the support held by the transport mechanism is transferred to the dyeing liquid tank or the decolorizing liquid tank. Since the support is immersed in the dyeing solution or decolorization solution, the support does not move in the solution, making it easy to move the support to this process or from this process to other processes. There is no risk of damage to the support during movement.

Therefore, the process of dyeing and decolorizing can be carried out efficiently and reliably.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIGS. 1 and 2 are diagrams showing the overall structure of the dyeing and decolorizing apparatus of the present invention. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Vertical movement table, 12... Staining liquid tank, 13... Decolorizing liquid tank, 20... Transport mechanism, 30... Support body.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A transport mechanism for transporting the support after electrophoresis and holding it in a fixed position, a moving table for horizontally moving the staining solution tank and the decolorizing solution tank, and the above-mentioned staining solution tank and decolorizing solution tank. and a mechanism for moving the movable base up and down while the movable base is placed on the movable base, and by moving the movable base horizontally and vertically, the support held at the fixed position is dyed and A dyeing and decolorizing device for a support in an oven electrophoresis device, which performs dyeing and decolorizing operations by immersing it in a decolorizing solution.