A sex toy collects a body fluid and/or cells as present in a genital, especially in a female vagina, for a diagnostic test, especially an in-vitro diagnostic test and/or a biomarker test. The sex toy includes a housing having at least one sampling port leading into at least one sampling channel for collecting a sample of body fluid and/or cells through the sampling port and the sampling channel inside the housing. The sex toy includes a test module adapted for analyzing and/or screening and/or monitoring diagnostic parameters of a collected sample body fluid and/or cells with medical implications as well as general health and lifestyle parameters. The test module includes comprising at least a first analyzing unit for carrying out a diagnostic test.

Identification of infectious agents, in samples like blood, urine, mouthwash obtained from patients, is the most important tool for laboratory diagnosis of infectious diseases. Due to their technical nature, diagnostic tests can use only a small part of the sample obtained from the patient. For that reason, it is very important to concentrate infectious agents into a small volume of sample that will be used in diagnostic tests, to increase their sensitivity. Additionally, there may be substances that interfere by working of the diagnostic tests based on nucleic acid amplification like polymerase chain reaction (PCR). It is important to remove these substances so that this kind of diagnostic tests can work properly. This invention is a method of concentrating infectious agents in biological samples by using elastic polymer meshes. When added to liquid biological samples, these meshes remove water and small molecules from their environment, diminish the volume of the sample and thus enable concentrating the microorganisms Concentration of microorganism and removal of substances that inhibit the working of diagnostic methods, increase the sensitivity of these methods.

The present disclosure provides systems, methods, devices, and kits for analysis of vaginal biological samples. A device for the analysis of vaginal biological samples can include a sample collector, an extractor, and an assay cartridge. A method for the analysis of vaginal biological samples can include detecting the presence or absence of a pathology, a disease, an immune disorder, a reproductive disorder of a subject. The method may further comprise preserving, storing, or transporting the vaginal biological samples. A kit for the analysis of vaginal biological samples can include probe, reagents and instructions for detecting a nucleic acid in the vaginal biological samples.

A transport medium is disclosed that can be utilized for both sample collection and molecular diagnostic applications. The transport medium can be utilized with multiple types of biological samples and maintains the stability of nucleic acid present in the biological samples so that one or more nucleic acid assay target(s) present in the biological sample is not substantially degraded during storage and shipping. Also disclosed are kits containing the transport medium, mixtures that include a biological sample disposed in the transport medium, and methods of producing and using the medium.

An ingestible apparatus for collecting samples from a target area of a gastrointestinal (GI) tract of a subject and/or for delivering a health-related substance thereto. An example ingestible apparatus includes a housing defining a sample compartment, a stopper configured to seal an access port, and an actuation assembly connected to the stopper. The actuation assembly is movable between a first working position where the access port is open and a second working position where the access port is sealed with the stopper. The apparatus also includes a dissolvable block configured to prevent the actuation assembly from moving between the first and second working positions until the apparatus is within a target area of the GI tract. The actuation assembly is configured, in the second working position, to apply a linear force at an interface between the stopper and a sealing surface to seal the access port with the stopper.

Disclosed is a sample collection and detection card. A lower cover of the card is provided with a sample loading chamber capable of accommodating a sampling part of a sampling end, an outlet is arranged at a bottom of the sample loading chamber, and a sample loading area of a test strip is located at the outlet; a fixing structure for fixing a sampling rod to a box is further arranged between the box and the sampling rod, and the sampling part is deformable when the sampling rod is fixed to the box. In embodiments of the present disclosure, the sample loading chamber is arranged on the lower cover, and the sample loading area of the test strip is arranged at the outlet of the sample loading chamber.

A method is provided that includes intranasally dispensing nasal wash fluid into a nasal cavity of a subject. Thereafter, a specimen sample is collected by performing an anterior nares nasal swab. The specimen sample is tested for the presence of a virus using a lateral flow immunoassay test strip. Other embodiments are also described.

The present invention provides a sampling capsule and a sampling capsule system. The sampling capsule includes an enclosure, a partition wall arranged in the enclosure, and a sample chamber enclosed by the partition wall and the enclosure at a first side of the partition wall. The sampling capsule further includes an inner sample inlet on the partition wall, an outer sample inlet, a sampling tube and a switch assembly. The outer sample inlet is on the enclosure at a second side of the partition wall. The sampling tube connects the outer sample inlet and the inner sample inlet, and the switch assembly clamps or unclamps a portion of the sampling tube. When sampling is needed, the switch assembly unclamps the sampling tube to sample liquid. When sampling ends, the switch assembly tightly clamps the sampling tube to prevent sample liquid leak or contamination.

A syringe-based device includes a housing, a pre-sample reservoir, and an actuator. The housing defines an inner volume between a substantially open proximal end portion and a distal end portion that includes a port couplable to a lumen-defining device. The pre-sample reservoir is fluidically couplable to the port to receive and isolate a first volume of bodily fluid. The actuator is at least partially disposed in the inner volume and has a proximal end portion that includes an engagement portion and a distal end portion that includes a sealing member. The engagement portion is configured to allow a user to selectively move the actuator between a first configuration such that bodily fluid can flow from the port to the pre-sample reservoir, and a second configuration such that bodily fluid can flow from the port to a sample reservoir defined at least in part by the sealing member and the housing.

A specimen container holding apparatus is disclosed. The apparatus is configured to hold a container for receiving liquids from a bronchoscope. The apparatus includes a needle guide with a first and a second opening configured to receive a needle of the bronchoscope. The first and second opening may be disposed on a removable tip of the needle guide. The removable tip may be detachably connected to a removable tip connection point. The apparatus may further include a slide holder configured to hold a slide.