cold chain
A glossary of cold-chain terms
Setpoint is not air temperature, and a phase-change pack is not every coolant. Compare the cold-chain pairs labs treat as one word.
8 October 2026 · 11 min read
Tag
cold chain
Articles tagged cold chain. Tags group methods across clusters so a technique can be found from more than one route.
All topicsBuffers and laboratory water26Cell culture26Chromatography26Cold chain and sample storage26Cytometry and microscopy26DNA sequencing26Gels and blotting26Gene expression26Genome editing26Immunoassays26Laboratory labware26Laboratory safety26Liquid handling26Microbiology26Molecular cloning26Nucleic acid purification26PCR and amplification26Protein biochemistry26Proteomics26Research sourcing and study design26
cold chainbiosafetycrisprspecificationsequencingproteomicsenquiryglossarytroubleshootingcloningmicrobiologybuffersfreezerspipettingcalibrationelisacell cultureglassware
30 articles
cold chain
Avoiding frost on a rack you opened too long
Choose the rack from the map before you open the door. Warm moist air ices the front boxes, and the decision is to close.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
cold chain
Backup freezers and who holds the key
A backup is a named person, a route for the boxes, and a temperature check on arrival. A locked spare freezer is only a second appliance.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read
research sourcing
Cold-chain instructions belong in the enquiry
Put the cold-chain setpoint, coolant class, logger, excursion owner, and receiving hours into the enquiry before anyone quotes the shipment.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read
cold chain
Comparing storage temperatures for nucleic acids
DNA often tolerates minus 20 better than RNA. Compare fridge, minus 20, and minus 80 against the kit and the sample SOP.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read
microbiology
Competent cell handling on ice
How to thaw, hold and plate chemically competent E. coli so the cells stay cold and the colony still reports the DNA you added.
8 October 2026 · 11 min read
cold chain
Cryovials in liquid nitrogen and the explosion risk
A leaking cryovial can fill with liquid nitrogen and burst on warming. Compare that immersion risk with vapour-phase storage before you specify tubes.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
cold chain
Data loggers and what a temperature trace shows
A data logger draws a trace, not a verdict. Probe placement changes the meaning. Judge time out of range, not one pretty number.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
cold chain
Dry ice is cold carbon dioxide not a magic gel
Dry ice is solid carbon dioxide that sublimes near minus 78.5 °C. It is not a gel pack, and it does not cool by melting into a liquid.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
cold chain
Dry ice packing for sample shipments
Dry ice keeps non-infectious research samples cold and can burn skin or displace air. Carrier rules and infectious-substance law still govern shipping.
8 October 2026 · 11 min read
cold chain
Enzymes shipped on ice and what to do on arrival
On arrival, name the coolant and move the enzyme to the temperature on its document. A foam shipper is not a place to wait out a meeting.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
cold chain
Freeze-thaw cycles and aliquots
Freeze-thaw damage comes from ice, concentrated solutes, and interfaces. Aliquots cut cycles. No single cycle count fits every sample.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read