Magnetic beads having cell components of interest are translated between a sequence of processing wells in a tray without need for pipetting. The circular tray contains one or more sequences of wells each interconnected by a respective channel. The tray is rotated about a central axis and a magnet, an agitator, and a heater provided external to the tray enable magnetic bead translation, mixing, and incubation, respectively. The magnet proximate a well forms a cluster of beads. Manipulation of the tray in rotation and elevation results in translation of the cluster from one well, through a channel, and into an adjacent well. The well containing a cluster may be rotationally positioned in front of the agitator, the agitator extended into contact with the well, followed by mechanical agitation. The heater, disposed beneath the tray, may accept a well lowered thereto for selective heating.

The present disclosure provides an assay cartridge used in a PCR-based molecular diagnostic device. In one embodiment, the assay cartridge comprises (1) an elongated body having a proximal end, a distal end and a plurality of compartments arranged between the proximal end and the distal end, said plurality of compartments include at least a first pipette tip holder near the proximal end, and a second pipette tip holder near the distal end; and (2) a seal assembly covering the elongated body comprising a rigid frame which matches the top periphery of the elongated body, and an elastic top mounted on the rigid frame, the elastic top comprising a first sub-portion near the proximal end comprising a first ring structure that matches the first pipette holder, and a second sub-portion near the distal end comprising a second ring structure that matches the second pipette holder.

Embodiments disclose an apparatus and methods for biological sample processing enabling isolation and enrichment of microbial or pathogenic constituents from the sample. A vessel for sample containment and extraction is further disclosed for engagement with a transducer capable of efficient sample disruption and lysis. Together these components provide a convenient and inexpensive solution for rapid sample preparation compatible with downstream analysis techniques.

Methods and systems disclosed herein provide systems and methods for maintaining sterile conditions inside of a biological-fluid container during an entire process of delivery, incubation, centrifugation, and extraction of fluid. The methods and systems also provide systems and methods for localized extraction of a portion of a biological fluid.

A microfluidic apparatus, method, and associated applications utilize and apply to a formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue sample and performing a liquid-liquid extraction to remove the paraffin from the tissue sample prior to a nucleic acid purification step. A microfluidic device includes a dedicated liquid-liquid extraction process vessel, a nucleic acid purification process component, and a nucleic acid amplification reactor. A liquid-liquid extraction and nucleic acid purification kit includes a microfluidic device capable of performing both a liquid-liquid extraction process and a nucleic acid purification process, including a dedicated liquid-liquid extraction process vessel, an immiscible liquid or a precursor phase thereof disposed in the vessel, a nucleic acid purification process component, a nucleic acid amplification reactor fluidically, and a supply of reagents suitable to enable the liquid-liquid extraction process and the nucleic acid purification process.

The present invention relates to an apparatus (1) and method (2) for automatically preparing liquid-based cytology (LBC) slides (107) by means of filtration comprising of at least one substrate (101) for holding a vial (103) containing specimen, a filter (105) and a slide (107) wherein said substrate (101) is located at a first station (FS); at least one working station (WS) comprises of a working platform (109) connected to said first station (FS) wherein said first station (FS) includes a vertical rotary conveyor system (121) which is flexible, user friendly and capable of providing uniformity of the cell distribution in the homogenous thin-layer LBC slides (107) as well as increase system throughput.

A sample preparation module accepts a sample including a target analyte. The sample preparation module processes the sample through several reaction chambers and a solid phase column. Different reagents are present in the reaction chambers. The eluted analyte is then transferred to the amplification module, where it is further processed and amplified for optical analysis.

Methods and apparatus providing for the isolation of an unknown mutation from a sample comprising wild type nucleic acids and mutated nucleic acids through the application of time-varying driving fields and periodically varying mobility-altering fields to the sample within in an affinity matrix.

A container for concentration includes a supplying region in which a swirling flow of a gas is supplied to a solution in the container for concentration, and an avoidance region that is situated below the supplying region and in which supplying of the swirling flow to the solution is avoided.

A fine particle capture device, having a chip that has a plane part and projection parts, and is configured such that fine particle-containing liquid entering from an inlet port passes on the surface of the plane part in the chip and between a projection part and another projection part adjacent thereto and the liquid is discharged from an outlet port. The projection parts are disposed on the plane part in the form of layers. The layers each has a plurality of projection parts, and are configured such that the fine particle-containing liquid having passed through a layer on the inlet port side passes through a layer on the outlet port side adjacent thereto. Each layer has a capture part and a bypass part. The capture part is disposed on the outlet port side of the bypass part in a specific layer as a portion of another layer adjacent thereto.