Microscopy Test 1

Question 1

What are 6 hazards related to microscopy?

Answer 1

1) Manual Handling
2) Electrical hazard
3) Ergonomics
4) Slips, trips & falls
5) Biological hazard
6) Chemical hazard

Question 2

Who would you report a hazard or incident to?

Answer 2

Supervisor or lecturer

Question 3

What is the procedure to follow in the event of a chemical spill?

(~9 steps, doesn’t have to be word-for-word)

Answer 3

1) Alert surrounding people
2) Check self for contamination
3) Check if wearing correct PPE for spill clean
4) Cover spill & surrounds with absorbent material
5) Pour fresh 10% bleach over spill, leave for 30min contact
6) Remove sharp/other objects via necessary means
7) Clean area with 10% bleach solution
8) Decontaminate reusable cleanup items & self
9) Alert surrounding people that cleanup has finished

Question 4

What is the procedure for faulty or unsafe equipment?

Answer 4

1) Isolate power & unplug if not already done
2) Remove from area of use if practical
3) Tag & date “out of service” tag
4) Inform supervisor or relevant personnel

Question 5

What are artefacts in microscopy?

Answer 5

Artificial structure or tissue alteration on a prepared slide.

(something visible that shouldn’t be there)

Question 6

What are three examples of artefacts in microscopy? How can they be prevented or dealt with?

Answer 6

Air bubbles
- gently tapping coverslip
- laying coverslip from 45 degree angle

Fingerprints
- clean coverslip with Kim wipe
- wear gloves when handling slides

Hair
- clean coverslip and slide with Kim wipe
- tie long hair back

Question 7

What are 7 characteristics associated with specimens in light microscopy?

Answer 7

1) Shape & size
2) Presence of contamination
3) colour
4) consistency & variability
5) number of cells
6) type of cells
7) colour/staining & morphology

Question 8

What is another name for a compound light microsope? What are its key uses?

Answer 8

Brightfield
Standard laboratory microscope

Question 9

What are characteristics of a darkfield microscope?

Answer 9

Producing a bright image on a dark background.
Staining not required.
Useful for live specimens

Question 10

What are characteristics of a phase contrast microscope?

Answer 10

Uses refraction & interference caused by structures in the specimen.
Creates high-contrast, high-resolution images.
Staining not required.

Question 11

What are characteristics of a polarising microscope?

Answer 11

Plane-polarised light interacts with a birefringent.
Used to examine features of crystals to aid in identification.

Question 12

What are characteristics of a transmission microscope (TEM)?

Answer 12

Electron beams pass through a specimen to visualise small images.
Useful for small, thin specimens.

Question 13

What are characteristics of a scanning microscope (SEM)?

Answer 13

Uses electron beams to visualise surfaces.
Produces a 3D image.

Question 14

What is an example of sustainability in the lab?

Answer 14

Reusing 5ml micropipette tips

Question 15

What are 3 sources of waste within the laboratory?

Answer 15

1) Using too much reagent
2) Preparing excess slides
3) Using an excess amount of gloves

Question 16

What is confidentiality?

Answer 16

The obligation of organisations that collect information to ensure that no person or organisation is likely to be identified from any data released.

Question 17

Why is confidentiality important?

Answer 17

Maintains community goodwill + cooperation
Breaches of confidentiality can have legal consequences (fines, jail time)

Question 18

What is the name of WA’s act dealing with the protection of health information?

Answer 18

Commonwealth Privacy Act 1988

Question 19

What are 6 different samples requiring microscopic examination in a pathology laboratory?

Answer 19

1) Yeast cells
2) Blood
3) Animal tissue
4) Plant tissue
5) Algae
6) Bacteria