Glass Bottom
Culture Dishes


35mm and 50 mm dishes




Glass Bottom
Multiwell Plates


6, 12, 24 & 96-well plates
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
About Contact Us Search
Dish Selection Guide
FAQ - Glass Bottom Dishes
FAQ - MultiWell Plates
FREE Sample
Home
Microscopy
MultiWell Plates
How to Order
Price List
Product Information
Search
Site Map
Technical References
Coverslip Kits for Amnio

MatTek Corporation
200 Homer Avenue
Ashland, MA 01721
USA

Phone: 508.881.6771
Fax: 508.879.1532


German Home Page

Japanese Home Page
Frequently Asked Questions

Multi-Well Glass Bottom Culture Plates

Click on a question link below to jump to the answer.
Links throughout the answers will guide you to further information on our website or from other sources.

Should you have any further questions, please contact us.


Plate Utilization

Q1 Plate utilization How are multi-well glass bottom plates typically used?

Q2 Advantages of plates What are the advantages of using multi-well glass bottom plates compared to the standard glass bottom culture dishes?

Q4 Common users Who are the main users of multi-well glass bottom plates?

Q5 Customer feedback What kind of feedback have you got from customers?

Q6 Microscope type What type of microscope is the best for multi-well glass bottom plates?

Q10 Coverslip removal Can the coverslips be removed from the glass bottom 6-well, 12-well and 24-well plates?

Q11 DIC/Nomarski (Use of P24GTOP-1.5-F) How can I use the glass bottom multi-well plates for Nomarski Differential Interference Contrast (DIC) microscopy?


Plate Properties

Q7 Well depth/height How deep are the wells of the glass bottom multi-well plates? What is the height of the well sidewall?

Q8 Well diameter What is the diameter of the wells in the standard glass bottom multi-well plates?

Q9 Chemical compatibility What is the chemical compatibility of the glass bottom dishes and multi-well plates? Can they be used with organic solvents?


Coatings

Q3 Plate coatings Can I get poly-d-lysine or collagen coated glass bottom multi-well plates?



A1

How are multi-well glass bottom plates typically used?

The Multi-Well Glass Bottom Dishes can be used for almost all of the same applications for which the standard glass bottom dishes can be used. The biggest applications are fluorescence/immunofluorescence microscopy, confocal, live cell imaging, microinjection, videomicroscopy, phase contrast and time lapse photomicroscopy.

Back to top

A2

What are the advantages of using multi-well glass bottom plates compared to the standard glass bottom culture dishes?

1: The main advantage of the multi-well glass bottom plates is that you can grow 6, 12 ,24 or 96 cultures under identical conditions in the same culture plate. The multi-well plates are ideal for high throughput, high/high content screening applications.
2: Analysis using the multi-well plates is streamlined because only one (1) plate (versus multiple petri dishes) needs to be handled.
3: For a number of applications, treatment of the cultures (e.g., irradiation) is simplified using the multi-well plates.
4: Smaller wells in the glass bottom multi-well plates are useful for application of precious reagents in smaller volumes.

Back to top

A3

Can I get poly-d-lysine or collagen coated glass bottom multi-well plates?

Availability:
Currently, only poly-d-lysine coated 96-well plates are available as standard products (Part #'s: P96GC-0-5-F and P96GC-1.5-0-F).

Special Orders:
All uncoated plates are available coated on a special order basis. However, because no samples of coated multi-well plates are available, it is recommended that you request a sample of the uncoated multi-well plate (to inspect the geometry and/or apply your own coating) along with a coated glass bottom dish (to insure your cells will grow on the coated glass). This pre-testing is important because special order plates cannot be returned.

Pricing:
Special order plates are $60/case above the corresponding uncoated multi-well plates. There is a $50 special order charge that is waived when 3 or more cases are ordered.

Delivery:
Lead time for special orders is 6-8 weeks.

Back to top

A4

Who are the main users of multi-well glass bottom plates?

Pharmaceutical Companies (due to high throughput testing), Academic/Research Institutions, and Medical Institutions.

Back to top

A5

What kind of feedback have you got from customers?

Feedback has been very positive. A number of customers have purchased multi-well plates without first trying a sample based on their previous experience with the standard glass bottom dishes for new users.

For new users, a sample plate is available for evaluation.

Back to top

A6

What type of microscope is the best for multi-well glass bottom plates?

The 6-well glass bottom plate can be used with upright or inverted microscopes. However, the 12-well, 24-well and 96-well plates are compatible with inverted microscopes.

Back to top

A7

How deep are the wells of the glass bottom multi-well plates? What is the height of the well sidewall?

The depth of the micro-wells and the height of the sidewall depends on the type of multi-well plate:

1. 6-well plate: 1.45-1.55 mm/ 17 mm
2. 12-well plate: 1.45-1.55 mm/ 17 mm
3. 24-well plate: 1.10-1.20 mm/ 17 mm
4. 96-well plate: 1.05-1.25 mm/ 10 mm

Back to top

A8

What is the diameter of the wells in the standard glass bottom multi-well plates?

1. 6-well plate: 10, 14, or 20 mm
2. 12-well plate: 10 or 14 mm
3. 24-well plate: 10 or 13 mm
4. 96-well plate: 5 mm

Back to top

A9

What is the chemical compatibility of the glass bottom dishes and multi-well plates? Can they be used with organic solvents?

The body of the glass bottom dishes and multi-well plates is made from polystyrene. Therefore, they have limited compatibility with organic solvents. Please see the chemical compatibility table below.

Solvent Chemical Compatibility
Acetone Poor
Ammonium hydroxide (1N) Fair
Ammonium hydroxide (25%) Fair
Aniline Good
Butanol Good
Chloroform Poor
Dimethylformamide Poor
Dimethylsulfoxide(DMSO) Poor
DMSO/H2O (20/80) Good
Dioxane Poor
Ethanol Good
Hexane Poor
Hydrochloric acid (25%) Good
Hydrochloric acid (concentrated) Fair
Methanol Good
Methyl ethyl diketone Poor
Methylene chloride Poor
Nitric acid (25%) Poor
Nitric acid (concentrated) Poor
Sodium hydroxide Good
Toluene Poor
Xylene Poor

Back to top

A10

Can the coverslips be removed from the glass bottom 6-well, 12-well and 24-well plates?

Yes.  However, for most applications, cells growing in the glass bottom multi-well plates can be viewed without removal of the coverslips.  If necessary (e.g. for long term storage purposes), the coverslips can be removed using the following procedure:

1. Order Part # PDCF OS 30 (Dow Corning fluid OS 30, available from MatTek).
2. Place the cover of the multi-well plate on a clean surface top side up. (Do not invert the cover).
3. Pipette 3.0 ml of OS 30 onto the top side of the cover.
4. Place the bottom of the multi-well plate on top of the cover. The OS 30 liquid on the cover should be touching the coverslips attached to the bottom of the multi-well plate.
5. Allow the plate to sit in the OS 30 for 45 minutes at room temperature.
6. Blot the bottom of the multi-well plate using an absorbent paper towel.
7. Place the multi-well plate on a clean surface.  Using forceps, press down on the edge of the coverslips to separate the coverslips from the plate.

Note: If the above procedure is followed, the PDCF OS 30 liquid will not contact the cells and will not disrupt cells on the coverslip or the staining thereof.

Back to top

A11

How can I use the glass bottom multi-well plates for Nomarski Differential Interference Contrast (DIC) microscopy?

You will need to order BOTH a glass bottom multi-well plate and a glass cover. Order any P06G plate (e.g. P06G-1.5-20-F), P12G plate (e.g. P12G-1.5-14-F), or P24G plate (e.g. P24G-1.5-13-F) along with a glass cover (Part# P24GTOP-1.5-F). The glass covers can be re-used following re-sterilization of the covers by soaking them in 70% ethanol for 30 minutes.

Back to top