[Histonet] reagents without expiration dates

[Mark Turner]

I once worked for a lab in the Midwest in the early 80's and was surprised to find a quart-sized bottle of very dehydrated powder labeled "Picric Acid" with a date of 1962 on it.  Yellow granular dust covered the top.  I immediately notified our security folks, who called in the local bomb squad.  The squad took the bottle out into the field next to the hospital and detonated it.  Left a nice little crater...  You can say I started my career with a "Bang!"  :-)

Mark Turner, HT(ASCP) QIHC
IHC / Histology Manager



678-319-3321 Direct
770-508-7644 Cell                        
678-319-1454
mailto:mturner <@t> csilaboratories.com
csilaboratories.com

2580 Westside Parkway
Alpharetta, GA  30004


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-----Original Message-----
From: WILLIAM DESALVO [mailto:wdesalvo.cac <@t> hotmail.com] 
Sent: Thursday, February 02, 2012 6:03 PM
To: rjbuesa <@t> yahoo.com; histonet; talulahgosh <@t> gmail.com
Subject: RE: [Histonet] reagents without expiration dates


Many, many, many years ago back in the 80's, I worked for Sigma-Aldrich and was visiting Charles Churukian's lab. He had a full wall of his lab with shelves, floor to ceiling, of dried and liquid Sigma reagents. He had every lab chemical and reagent I knew and was very proud that he was a great Sigma customer. The labels were none that I had seen in 10 yrs working at Sigma, so I took a few containers down and read the manufacturing code. The oldest was sodium bisulfate, gallon container, manufactured in 1946. Most were 20-30 yrs old then and in large quantities. I have always thought to myself, with many more customers like Chuck, Sigma could go out of business. I miss Chuck, but I bet he is still teaching the heavens everything they need to know about Histology and Staining. I don't know if that beats your stuff, but I bet the chemicals Chuck left behind are still in use.   

William DeSalvo, B.S., HTL(ASCP)

 

> Date: Thu, 2 Feb 2012 13:14:53 -0800
> From: rjbuesa <@t> yahoo.com
> To: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu; talulahgosh <@t> gmail.com
> Subject: Re: [Histonet] reagents without expiration dates
> CC: 
> 
> Ha.Ha,Ha!!!!!!!!!!!
> I used to prepare staining solutions with some "Merck-Darmstad" anilines manufactured just after the "Great War", i.e. the FIRST World War (about 1925 before the World Great Depression).
> Try to beat that!.
> René J.
> 
> --- On Thu, 2/2/12, Emily Sours <talulahgosh <@t> gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> 
> From: Emily Sours <talulahgosh <@t> gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Histonet] reagents without expiration dates
> To: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
> Date: Thursday, February 2, 2012, 3:33 PM
> 
> 
> I've always wanted to have a contest to see who had the oldest reagents.
> My lab once had something that was 20 years old.
> 
> Emily
> 
> The whole point of this country is if you want to eat garbage, balloon 
> up to 600 pounds and die of a heart attack at 43, you can! You are 
> free to do so. To me, that's beautiful.
> --Ron Swanson
> 
> 
> 
> On Thu, Feb 2, 2012 at 2:07 PM, WILLIAM DESALVO <wdesalvo.cac <@t> hotmail.com>wrote:
> 
> >
> > Per SOP, we relabel, list date of receipt, test for quality and then 
> > apply a 12 month expiration date. We re-test after 12 months and 
> > continue to use, with 12 month dating, as long as the reagent meets 
> > quality standards set in the SOP.
> >
> > William DeSalvo, B.S., HTL(ASCP)
> >
> >
> >
> > > From: kstoll <@t> mcw.edu
> > > To: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
> > > Date: Thu, 2 Feb 2012 12:56:58 -0600
> > > Subject: [Histonet] reagents without expiration dates
> > >
> > > Could anyone share a policy to deal with regents that do not have 
> > > a
> > manufacturer's expiration date?
> > > CAP checklist ANP 21382
> > >
> > > Thanks,
> > > Kathryn Stoll, HT(ASCP)
> > > Depatment of Pathology
> > > Medical College of Wisconsin
> > > 9200 W Wisconsin Ave
> > > Milwaukee WI 53226
> > > 414.805.1525
> > > kstoll <@t> mcw.edu
> > >
> > > _______________________________________________
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> > > Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
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> >
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