We are a research group, but had paraffin blocks stored at room temperature for 20+ years. We finally made the decision to just keep 2 years in the lab and store 5 years off-site. We trashed the rest.
Peggy Peggy Sherwood Lab Associate, Photopathology Wellman Center for Photomedicine (EDR 214) Massachusetts General Hospital 50 Blossom Street Boston, MA 02114-2696 617-724-4839 (voice mail) 617-726-6983 (lab) 617-726-1206 (fax) msherw...@partners.org -----Original Message----- From: histonet-boun...@lists.utsouthwestern.edu [mailto:histonet-boun...@lists.utsouthwestern.edu] On Behalf Of Rene J Buesa Sent: Tuesday, September 20, 2011 10:20 AM To: histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu; Itai Moshe Subject: Re: [Histonet] How to store paraffin blocks ? The usual procedure is to store at room temperature. It is assumed that the room is air conditioned, otherwise if the temp is above 80ºF some blocks may stick together, although that is not a real problem. If at 4ºC you will need a refrigerated room or a series of refrigerators, which is an additional and unnecessary expenditure. We use to store the blocks for 9 years, unless it is a special case (used in teaching) and those are stored forever. Supposedly you use the slides for some procedure and those cut as "extras" are kept along with the originals stained in the same files. If you are referring to sections for IHC or other procedure, the epitopes will be oxidized by the oxygen in the air in less than 2 weeks, so they can either be stored in a fridge, or covered with melted paraffin, or stored in mineral oil. René J. --- On Tue, 9/20/11, Itai Moshe <itai.mo...@mail.huji.ac.il> wrote: From: Itai Moshe <itai.mo...@mail.huji.ac.il> Subject: [Histonet] How to store paraffin blocks ? To: histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu Date: Tuesday, September 20, 2011, 2:23 AM Hi Histonet's, What is the recommended way to store paraffin blocks for a long period ? Room temperature, or 4C ? The advantage in storing at 4C is that the blocks are always ready for sectioning. Is there a risk when storing at 4C that the humidity in the fridge will cause damage to the paraffin blocks and the tissue ? After sectioning, How do you store the slides, and for how long ? Thank's Itai Moshe _______________________________________________ Histonet mailing list Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet _______________________________________________ Histonet mailing list Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet The information in this e-mail is intended only for the person to whom it is addressed. If you believe this e-mail was sent to you in error and the e-mail contains patient information, please contact the Partners Compliance HelpLine at http://www.partners.org/complianceline . If the e-mail was sent to you in error but does not contain patient information, please contact the sender and properly dispose of the e-mail. _______________________________________________ Histonet mailing list Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet