Uses for Laboratory Incubators

While the first recorded chicken egg incubators were invented by the ancient Chinese and Egyptians in the 4th century BC, laboratory incubators weren’t popularised until after 1950.

As scientists began to learn more about diseases, they came to study the microbial pathogens that existed under the microscope.

Since their inception, laboratory incubators have developed a range of applications in the study of pharmaceuticals, hematology, biochemistry and genetic engineering, giving rise to various kinds of incubators for sale.

Read on to discover the common uses of laboratory incubators.

Incubators in Pharmaceuticals

To understand the effect of drugs on the bodies of humans or animals, tests must be performed where the monitoring of cell cultures is uniform and reliable.

In pharmaceuticals, incubators provide a controlled environment to undertake these tests, coming in various shapes and sizes depending on laboratory space, auxiliary equipment and the specific conditions required.

By isolating specific cells within a Petri dish and exposing them to a developing medicine, for example, researchers can examine the effectiveness of such medicine.

Factors such as temperature, air composition (ie. carbon dioxide, oxygen, nitrogen levels) and humidity can all be controlled by different incubators and create an environment specific to the natural occurrence of such cells.

Incubators in Hematology

The incubation of blood is extremely useful for pre-transfusion testing, improving the survivability of those needing a transfusion.

This could include women in labour, or those with blood diseases, mass trauma or undergoing chemotherapy.

Platelet incubators are also commonly used in blood banks for storage of samples. These small cell fragments can then be used in small wound repair and blood clotting.

In Australia, a new donor is needed every 5 minutes, meaning there are many samples moving in and out of donation centres each day and an equivalent number of incubators is needed to store them.

Incubators in Biochemistry

Biochemical incubators are widely used in research institutes, environmental protection, forestry and animal husbandry industries for the preservation of cell culture preservation, bacteria, and microbes.

By understanding the nature of cells in these environments and the effect the environments have on the cells, measures can be made to preserve them and allow them to flourish.

Many biochemical incubators and incubators more broadly have highly sensitive temperature control and alarms for when these limits are exceeded. This ensures the typical environment of the chosen cells are perfectly simulated.

The careful control of air composition is particularly important in biochemistry as it can be useful to measure the oxygen demands of different cells.

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