Isolation tube
AssigneesBiomerieux, BioFire Defense, LLC
InventorsKirk Ririe, Christopher S. Ronsick, Mark S. Wilson, John D. Walsh, Ryan T. Hill
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A separation container for extracting a portion of a sample for use or testing and method for preparing samples for downstream use or testing are provided. The separation container may include a body defining an internal chamber. The body may define an opening, and the body may be configured to receive the sample within the internal chamber. The separation container may further include a seal disposed across the opening, such that the seal may be configured to seal the opening of the body, and a plunger movably disposed at least partially inside the internal chamber. The plunger may be configured to be actuated to open the seal and express the portion of the sample.
Claims20
A plunger for expressing a portion of a sample from a container, the plunger comprising:
- a longitudinal member defining a first distal end, a second distal end, and an axis extending between the first distal end and the second distal end;
- and
- a plunger seal positioned about the longitudinal member at a location between the first distal end of the longitudinal member and the second distal end of the longitudinal member, the plunger seal defining a plunger seal diameter perpendicular to the axis, and
- wherein at least a portion of the longitudinal member between the location and the first distal end of the longitudinal member defines a plunger diameter that is less than the plunger seal diameter, wherein an outer circumferential surface of the plunger seal is configured to engage a wall of the container.
A separation container comprising:
- a container body defining an internal chamber configured to receive a sample, wherein the container body defines a first distal container end, a collection region at least a portion of which defines a collection diameter, and a pellet region at least a portion of which defines a pellet diameter, wherein the collection diameter is greater than the pellet diameter, and wherein the pellet region is defined between the first distal end and the collection region in the internal chamber;
- a plunger configured to be disposed at least partially within the internal chamber, the plunger comprising:
- a longitudinal member defining a first distal end, a second distal end, and an axis extending between the first distal end and the second distal end;
- and
- a plunger seal positioned about the longitudinal member at a location between the first distal end of the longitudinal member and the second distal end of the longitudinal member, the plunger seal defining a plunger seal diameter perpendicular to the axis,
- wherein the plunger seal diameter is greater than or equal to the pellet diameter and less than the collection diameter,
- wherein at least a portion of the longitudinal member between the location and the first distal end of the longitudinal member defines a plunger diameter that is less than the plunger seal diameter, and
- wherein an outer circumferential surface of the plunger seal is configured to engage a wall of the container body.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.