Before you open anything
Work out what you are going to record, and where, before the first vial is opened. The two identifiers worth capturing every time are the lot number and the order reference: between them they tie any vial on your shelf back to a specific certificate and a specific delivery.
Labelling
- Keep the original vial label intact. It carries the lot number, and without it a vial cannot be matched to a report.
- Label anything you decant or reconstitute with the compound, the lot, the concentration and the date it was prepared.
- Date-mark on first opening, not on arrival — that is the date that matters afterwards.
Keeping an inventory
A simple record per vial is enough: compound, size, lot, order reference, date received, date first opened, where it is stored. That is sufficient to answer the two questions that come up later — which certificate covers this? and how long has this been open?
Keep a copy of the certificate alongside the record. Every report on this site is downloadable as a PDF from the reports page, and there is a merged bundle of all of them if you would rather file one document.
General care
- Handle lyophilized material dry and sealed for as long as possible; open vials only when you are ready to use them.
- Let cold vials warm before opening so moisture does not condense inside.
- Do not return material to a vial once it has been removed.
- Keep vials upright, and keep them out of light where you can.
Storage temperatures and reconstitution are covered in shipping & storage.
Disposal
Disposal of unused material and empty vials is governed by your own institution's waste procedures and by local regulation. Follow those rather than anything written here.
Intended use
Everything supplied here is for laboratory research use only. It is not a drug or a supplement, it is not for human or veterinary use, and it is not for any diagnostic or therapeutic purpose. Handling practices on this page assume a laboratory setting and a competent operator working to their own protocol.