Pressure cooker method

Another aspect to consider is that performance of HIAR within an automated staining instrument can add considerably to laboratory cost compared to performing manual HIAR off-line with devices such as pressure cookers, vegetable steamers, or microwave ovens.19 In addition, off-line HIAR methods... 

Taylor CR, Shi S-R, Chen C, et al. Comparative study of antigen retrieval heating methods microwave, microwave and pressure cooker, autoclave, and steamer. Biotech. Histochem. 1996 71 263-270. 

There are several variations of HIER. Many laboratories have attempted to improve the original method by altering the buffer solutions as well as the source and mode of heating. Currently, the most popular HIER technologies use stainless steel or plastic pressure cookers, microwave ovens, or autoclaves as the heat source and low-molarity buffers with acidic or alkaline pR (6,7,9-12). 

Most methods employ temperatures near or beyond 100°C. Heating above the atmospheric boiling temperature is possible in traditional or in microwave pressure cookers as well as in autoclaves (see Subheading 1.1.2.), In a commercial PC, the operating pressure is about 103 kPa/15 psi, which results in 120°C temperature (19). The same temperature is employed in wet autoclave HIER protocols (10,15,19). 

The pressure cooker-microwave heating method is simpler than the autoclave procedure and more efficient than microwave heating alone. The pressure cooker does not require checking the level of the antigen retrieval solution during heating in the microwave oven, and a large number of slides can be loaded simultaneously. In addition, the pressure... 

The most commonly accepted point of view is that heat is responsible for unmasking the epitopes. In fact, Battifora (1996) has introduced the phrase heat-induced epitope retrieval (HIER). Heating at KXPC is a powerful treatment that can unmask hidden, buried, or crosslinked epitopes. Heat can be provided not only by a microwave oven, but also by an autoclave, a pressure cooker, steam, or a hot plate. A consensus on which method of heating is most effective in the retrieval of all types of epitopes is lacking. Therefore, some... 

The use of a pressure cooker is a common method to increase the reaction rate and to shorten the cooking time. A typical pressure cooker operates at 15 psig, thus raising the cooking temperature from 212 to 249°F. 

Various heating methods, including conventional heating in water bath, pressure cooker, steamer, and... 

A few tests were made in which the zeolite was pretreated to place it in essentially the Na form. In this method 30 g of zeolite and 200 ml of 1 mol 1 NaCl contained in a 250-ml beaker were placed in a household pressure cooker which was used as a water bath. The sample in solution was heated to v 120°C for 2 hours at a pressure of v 2 atm., using a method similar to that used by Starkey (12). A 5-minute cool-down time was then used before opening. Each sample was then washed thrice with distilled water, and the procedure repeated twice more before the zeolite was dried for subsequent use. 

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