Laminar Air Flow

LAF Laminar Air Flow is a sterile work table for carrying out activitiesinoculation/planting. Laminar Air Flow is a tool used in the preparation of plant material, planting and transferring plants from one bottle to another in in vitro culture. This tool is named Laminar Air Flow Cabinet, because it blows sterile air continuously across the workplace so that the workplace is free from dust and spores that might fall into the media during planting. The air flow comes from room air which is drawn into the device through the first filter (prefilter), which is then blown out through a very fine filter whichcalled HEPA (High efficiency Particulate Air Filter), using a blower.Laminar Air Flow (LAF) is used as a room for eseptic work. The principle of appreciating a room is based on outflow of air so that air contamination can be minimized. In Laminar Air Flow, there are 2 types of filters: 1. Pre-filter, which uses a first filter for dust and rough objects. The pores are approximately 5 mm so the efficiency can reach 95 mm for objects ≥ 5 mm. 2. HEPA filter with 0.3 (m) pores and is found in the air outlet towards the work surface. The pre-filter must be cleaned frequently with a cacum cleaner and should be replaced once a year. However, the HEPA filter is replaced after being checked with a particulate count or with a tool called a magnehelic gauge. Some laminar air flow cabinets are equipped with UV lamps, some are without. In laminar air flow cabinets that are not equipped with UV lamps, the blower must be run continuously even if the laminar air flow cabinet is not in use. This is done to maintain the cleanliness of the work space in the laminar air flow. For laminar air flow equipped with a UV lamp, it is recommended to turn on the UV lamp for a minimum of 30 minutes before using the laminar air flow. When laminar air flow is in use, the UV lamp must be turned off, while the blower is running. The blower in the laminar air flow cabinet which is equipped with a UV lamp, only runs when the laminar air flow is being used. The tools included in Laminar Air Flow are: 1. Alcohol lamp/Bacti cinerator. 2. Alcohol container: bottle/goblet ≥ 250 ml. 3. Tweezers, scalpel, scissors and needle. 4. Sterile Petri-dish 5. Disceting Microscope, when isolating the meristem. 6. Tissue paper/cotton. 7. Sprayer contains 70% alcohol (does not have to be in the cabinet).Things that need to be considered when using Laminar Air Flow (LAF) are as follows: 1. Do not place the Bunsen lamp too close to the filter and alcohol to soak the culture equipment. 2. Do not stack tools, media bottles, and other objects in front of the work area so that they block air flow. 3. Do not dip a planting tool with a flame into alcohol (the alcohol flame contained in the planting tool is not clearly visible in the areaobviously BE CAREFUL!!!). 4. Don't approach a Bunsen lamp with hands that have just been sprayed with alcohol or spirits. 5. Clean the Laminar Air Flow Cabinet, after finishing work. Don't leave used bottles, used cotton wool, etc. in the LAF. The working principle of Laminar Air Flow (LAF) is as follows: 1. Laminar Air Flow is used as a sterile work table for inoculation/planting activities. 2. Laminar Air Flow prioritizes blowing sterile air driven by a blower which is filtered by a HEPA Filter.p 3. Before operating the Laminar Air Flow, it must be turned on for at least 30 minutes and must be sprayed with alcohol so that the equipment and work space are guaranteed to be sterile. 4. When carrying out work, the blower must be turned on which functions as a blower of sterile air and the TL lamp as illumination 5. So that Laminar Air Flow can function at all times, maintenance and upkeep of the equipment must always be carried out. How to Care for Laminar Air Flow (LAF): When the Laminar Air Flow Cabinet has been used, the maintenance steps include: 1. Clean all remaining pieces of explant with tissue. 2. Burn it (scalpel knife, tweezers) by spraying it first with 95% alcohol and placing it back in a ready-to-use condition. 3. Turn off the blower by pressing the "off" button. 4. Spray the work space with alcohol. 5. Close the Laminar Air Flow Cabinet door again. 6. Turn off the TL lights. 7. Turn the UV lamp back on. One of the factors that determines our success in initiating tissue culture (sterilizing explant material that comes from outside) is the quality of the Laminar Air Flow (LAF). The quality of the LAF is determined by the layer material (the filter used in the laminar.)Most LAF products in the country only use plaque filters which have the ability to filter objects only down to a few um (micrometers). So that in its implementation the results of LAF's work were not optimal. Then there are also those whose quality is quite good, namely that they use sterile filters which are specifically for filtering microbes. This sterile filter is called HEPA and it turns out that what many local products use is HEPA which is quality two or with a filtering capacity of 75%. There are sterile filters that have very high filtering capacity and are usually used for international standard laminars, namely those that use HEPA with a very high filtering capacity, namely 99.99%. In this condition, all particles and even odors will be filtered so that the LAF's working ability is truly very reliable. Difference between LAF and BSC The difference between LAF and BSC lies in two main parts, namely: 1. Airflow On the LAF dirty air enters through the top of the tool and exits through the front / sash. Meanwhile, in the BSC, dirty air enters through the front/sash and exits through the top of the tool. 2. Protected subject In the LAF, only the product/material being studied is protectedonly, because sterile air will pass through the product first before being discharged to the front / sash/ where the analyst works without any more filters. Meanwhile, in the BSC there are 3 things that are protected, namely the product, the analyst and the work environment, because the air flow is not directly exposed to the analyst, the air on the work desk is also sterile because of the double filter, the air that leaves the work room has gone through a filter first.The analysis carried out will be proportional to the level of danger with the number of subjects being protected. If the analysis carried out (the microorganisms studied) are able to spread quickly and can cause dangerous diseases, then it is recommended to use BSC for the analysis