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A haemocytometer is a specialized
microscope slide used to count cells,
organelles, etc. It has a thick base and uses a
special coverglass which is thick enough to
stay flat under the pull of surface tension
from the solution in the counting chamber.
The centre portion of the slide has etched grids with precisely spaced lines. The coverslip is
positioned 100 µm above the slide.
To count Aspergillus spores: make a 1:100 dilution of a harvested culture. Count the number of
spores in 10, 200 µm squares (five per side), and average. Calculate the number of spores per
µl as
(average per 200µm square) x 250 x 100 (dilution factor, which can vary as needed)