Merck Millipore SNAP i.d. 2.0 protein detection system for immunohistochemistry

Merck Millipore has introduced the SNAP i.d. 2.0 protein detection system for immunohistochemistry (IHC), which is said to streamline immunohistochemistry workflows and decrease slide handling time. The product enables parallel processing of up to 24 tissue slides at a time, making it easier to apply consistent conditions and reduce potential process variability inherent in manual IHC methods.

The system’s intuitive format reduces slide handling and speeds wash steps during blocking, washing, antibody incubation and labelling. A controlled vacuum force removes solutions evenly from all slides at once, in seconds. This approach systemises the handling of multiple slides, reducing slide-to-slide process variation without incurring the costs of automation.

The protocol produces robust and consistent staining, without causing tissue degradation or the blotchy artefacts that sometimes plague autostainers. The system is compatible with standard IHC slides and protocols, as well as diverse tissue preparations, including formalin-fixed or fresh frozen samples. Using the device, Western blots and IHC experiments can be performed in parallel.

To conserve precious antibodies, the system enables the manual addition, as well as the removal and recovery, of small volumes of antibodies. Recovered antibodies can be used multiple times.