Protocol Templates are at the heart of CultureTrax and can be a valuable tool for experimental design, managing cell culture and training new scientists in your lab. Think of Protocol Templates as reusable workflows that help keep your daily cell culture on track. Protocol Templates provide a construct to define the materials, methods and timeline you will use for any cell culture experiment or workflow and can be easily modified and shared with your lab. After you build a protocol template, CultureTrax will use it to help you organize and document your daily culture work.
Preparing to Create a Protocol Template
As you create a Protocol Template, you will define your method and timing for each culture Action (i.e., Thaw, Passage, Cryopreserve) and attach corresponding materials to those Actions. Follow the preparatory steps below to help expedite the creation of your Protocol Template.
Gather all documents related to the Protocol Template you want to build into one folder and save them as PDFs. If you have 'separate' documents that specify methods for thawing, passaging, and cryopreservation, these documents should all be in the folder.
Upload the reference protocol documents from Step 1 to CultureTrax.
Select 'Documents' and then click on 'Choose files to upload (pdf only), (not shown), navigate to the folder and select as many as you like. The platform will walk you through adding each document in turn.
Give it a display name. (This isn't required. If it's left blank the platform defaults to the file name.
Choose which collection, Personal or Lab, to put it in. (Required)
What type of document is it? The platform contains high level groupings, Material, Culture Protocol, Analysis Protocol, etc., with sub groupings. Select the most appropriate. (Required)
Use the text fields to add any pertinent information you choose.
Add related materials and recipes to CultureTrax. Before you build your first Protocol Template, we recommend that you first add and build the required Single Ingredient Materials and Recipe Materials.
Note: A good 'first' Protocol Template to build is your lab's PSC Growth and Expansion workflow. This Growth and Expansion Protocol Template should reflect the way your lab commonly grows PSCs and include materials and methods for actions like Thawing and Passaging through Cryopreservation. Once you are familiar with Growth and Expansion Protocol Templates, it's easy to build other types of Protocol Templates such as Differentiation or Reprogramming.