Microcell Information and Courses from MediaLab, Inc.
These are the MediaLab courses that cover Microcell and links to relevant pages within the course.
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| Sperm counting methods Sperm can be counted either manually or by automated methods. Although automated counting has some advantages for assessment of motility parameters, manual counting is still performed by most laboratories.
There are several manual counting methods available for semen. These include:Neubauer hemacytometerMakler chamberCellVu (Millennium Sciences, Inc)MicroCell (Conception Technologies)
The Makler, CellVu, and MicroCell methods have the advantage of requiring no dilution of the semen. Since semen is viscous, accurate dilution can be problematic. These methods also allow counting of motile and non-motile sperm at the same time and thus avoid the need for separate assessment via wet mount. Each laboratory should determine the best most reproducible method for their own situation, equipment, and expertise. | View Page |
| Other counting chambers Some professionals believe that sperm counts done by hemacytometer are not accurate because of the need to dilute the viscous semen prior to counting. There are several other counting methods available to assess sperm concentration.The advantages of the following methods are: the specimen does not have to be diluted motile and non-motile sperm can both be counted avoiding the need for wet mount evaluation of motile cells. Note that counting moving sperm can be difficult and takes significant practice to avoid error. For each of these methods accurate counts are best obtained when at least 100 sperm per replicate are counted. Makler (Zygotek Systems, Inc.). An undiluted sample is placed on the chamber and covered with the coverglass. Ten squares on the grid contain 0.000001ml. CellVu (Millennium Sciences, Inc). Two sides of a special slide are loaded with a drop of undiluted semen. Coverslips with special grids are placed on top of the sperm according to manufacturer's directions. Sperm on both sides are counted. MicroCell (Conception Technologies) has two chambers on a single, disposable slide. A special eyepiece with a grid is needed for counting. | View Page |