Blood culture bottles with mechanisms for controlled release of substances into culture media

An apparatus for a controlled combination of reagents, the apparatus comprising:

• a vessel adapted for receiving a biological sample having a neck portion and a body portion wherein the body portion of the vessel contains a culture media prior to receiving the biological sample and wherein the body portion of the vessel comprises one or more sensors for monitoring conditions in the culture media or a headspace gas in the vessel;
• a cap element attached to the vessel;
• a vessel insert secured in the neck portion of the vessel by the cap element and adapted for receiving at least one reagent wherein the at least one reagent is selected from the group consisting of adsorption resin, culture medium, lytic reagent, and a combination thereof, wherein the culture media is a lytic media adapted to grow microorganisms therein, the microorganisms selected from the group consisting of aerobic microorganisms, anaerobic microorganisms, mycobacteria, fungi, and yeast and wherein the culture media is in liquid or lyophilized form;
• wherein the cap element further comprises a pierceable aperture through which is received the biological sample into the vessel or vessel insert;
• at least one sealing element separating the at least one reagent received by the vessel insert from the body portion of the vessel, and
• a rod having a proximal end and a distal end positioned within the vessel so that the proximal end is adjacent to the cap element and distal end is in a first position proximal to the at least one sealing element;
• and
• wherein force applied to the proximal end of the rod results in the distal end of the rod moving from the first position to a second position thereby disrupting the at least one sealing element to allow contents of the vessel insert to release into the body portion of the vessel, and wherein the apparatus is operable to initiate disruption separately from and after receiving of the biological sample via the pierceable aperture into the vessel or vessel insert.