Device and method for extracting biomolecules

Abstract

A device for extracting biomolecules comprises a membrane tube and a container. The membrane tube has an upper portion and a lower portion. The upper portion of the membrane tube has an open end. The lower portion of the membrane tube accommodates a permeable membrane and has an open end. The container has an upper portion and a lower portion. The upper portion of the container has an open end, which allows the membrane tube to be pushed into the container and forms a liquid tightness between the membrane tube and the container. The lower portion of the container has a closed end. When the device is used, an appropriate amount of liquid is added to the container, and then the membrane tube is pushed into the container, so that the liquid in the container is compressed by the membrane tube and passes through the lower open end of the membrane tube and the membrane, and is accommodated in the space within the membrane tube above the membrane to achieve the purpose of extracting biomolecules.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a device and a method for extracting biomolecules. Background Technology

[0002] Membrane tubes are frequently used to extract specific proteins, nucleic acids, and other biomolecules from biological samples. A membrane tube is a tubular shape containing a permeable membrane inside. The upper part of the membrane tube has an opening, while the lower part, which houses the permeable membrane, has a bottom opening. In the traditional method of using membrane tubes, liquid is added to the tube, and subsequently, centrifugal force generated by a centrifuge or a pressure difference generated by a vacuum pump is applied to the tube. The method of performing extraction generally involves three basic processes:

[0003] 1. Accumulation: A liquid sample is added to a membrane tube, and an appropriate force is applied to push the liquid sample through the lower opening of the membrane tube. During the accumulation process, specific biomolecules of the liquid sample accumulate on the membrane.

[0004] 2. Cleaning: Add a cleaning solution to the membrane tube and apply force to cause impurities remaining in the membrane tube to pass through the membrane and be discharged from the membrane tube.

[0005] 3. Recovery: Add a dissolution solution to the membrane tube to dissolve the target biomolecule on the membrane, apply force to push it out of the tube, and enter another new container to achieve the objective of recovering the target biomolecule.

[0006] The aforementioned traditional operating method requires performing processes such as accumulation, cleaning, and recovery by using devices such as centrifuges or vacuum pumps to generate a force that pushes the liquid in the membrane tube, causing it to flow out through the membrane to the bottom opening. The operation of centrifuge devices is relatively complex and is not suitable for processing a large number of specimens. If a vacuum pump is used for the recovery process, a dedicated vacuum pump different from that used for the accumulation and cleaning processes must be used to ensure that the recovery process is performed under contamination-free conditions. However, an additional set of vacuum pumps will increase some difficulties in the design and implementation of automated equipment. means of solving the problem

[0007] The object of the present invention is to develop a method for simplifying the processing of specimens and an apparatus that facilitates automated processing by applying the method. In the present invention, liquid within the container enters the membrane tube through the lower opening of the membrane tube due to the compressive force generated when the membrane tube is pushed into the container. In the method of operation, an appropriate amount of liquid is added to the container, and subsequently, the membrane tube is pushed into the container, forming a liquid-tight seal between the membrane tube and the container. As the membrane tube continues to be pushed into the container, the liquid within the container is compressed by the membrane tube and flows through the opening in the lower part of the membrane tube and enters the membrane tube. Compared to traditional methods, the present invention requires only simple devices such as a membrane tube and a container, and does not require devices such as a centrifuge or a vacuum pump. In the prior art, the sample liquid is initially inside the membrane tube and then flows out; In contrast, in the present invention, the sample liquid is initially in the container and then flows through an opening in the lower part of the membrane tube to enter the membrane tube. The two directions in which the liquid flows in the membrane tube are opposite. In the present invention, the mechanism for generating the compressive force is also relatively simple, similar to a syringe in which a piston rod is pushed into the syringe to form a liquid-tight state with the syringe, and a compressive force is generated to inject the liquid. In the present invention, the membrane tube corresponds to the piston rod and the container corresponds to the syringe, but the front end of the syringe has an opening, and the container of the present invention is closed. The opening at the front end of the syringe is changed to the lower part of the membrane tube. The syringe device is different from the present invention, but the method of operation is similar.The present invention can replace traditional centrifuges and vacuum pumps by using a simple extrusion device comprising a membrane tube and a container, and in particular, in simplifying the recovery process where the dissolved solution is left in the original membrane tube and can be used directly, no additional container is required to contain the dissolved solution, and accordingly, the working device and process can be simplified. Furthermore, the method of extracting biomolecules from the membrane tube can be more easily implemented in an automated machine. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0008] FIG. 1 illustrates a membrane tube; FIG. 2 illustrates a container; FIG. 3 illustrates the state of a container filled with liquid; Figure 4 illustrates a state in which a membrane tube is pushed into a container. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0009] The device for extracting biomolecules of the present invention includes a membrane tube (10) and a container (20). FIGS. 1 and FIGS. 2 respectively illustrate the membrane tube (10) and the container (20).

[0010] A membrane tube (10) is a general device used in a process for extracting biomolecules, having the shape of a roughly circular tube, and includes an upper portion (11) and a lower portion (12). The upper portion (11) has an upper opening (13), and the lower portion (12) accommodates a permeable membrane (14) and has a lower opening (15).

[0011] FIG. 2 illustrates a container (20). The container (20) is also roughly tubular and includes an upper portion (21) and a lower portion (22). The upper portion (21) of the container has an opening (23), and the lower portion (22) has a closed end (24).

[0012] When the device is used, liquid is added to the container (20) (see FIG. 3), and the membrane tube (10) is pushed into the container (20) (see FIG. 4). The liquid in the container (20) is compressed by the membrane tube (10) and flows into the membrane tube (10) by passing through the lower opening (15) of the membrane tube (10) and the permeable membrane (14).

[0013] The membrane tube (10) is configured to fit into the container (20) so that when pushed into the container (20), the interface between them must be liquid-tight and the liquid inside the container (20) does not leak through the interface, but flows through the opening (15) in the lower part of the membrane tube and the permeable membrane (14) to enter the membrane tube (10).

[0014] Extracting biomolecules using the aforementioned membrane tube (10) and container (20) is more suitable for automation than conventional methods. In the recovery procedure for extracting biomolecules, a dissolution solution is added to the container (20), and then the membrane tube (10) containing the permeable membrane (14) is pushed into the container (20) through the upper opening (23) of the container (20). Since the container (20) and the membrane tube (10) are liquid-tight, the liquid inside the container (20) is compressed by the membrane tube (10), passes through the lower opening (15) of the membrane tube (10) and the permeable membrane (14), and enters the membrane tube (10).

[0015] The present invention differs significantly from traditional methods in the recovery process. In traditional methods, a dissolving solution is added to a membrane tube, the dissolving solution can separate biomolecules from the membrane, and then a force (e.g., centrifugal force or atmospheric pressure) is applied to push the dissolving solution out of the membrane tube. A container is provided to receive the dissolving solution containing biomolecules to achieve the purpose of recovering target biomolecules. In the method of the present invention, a dissolving liquid is added to the container (20), and then the membrane tube (10) is pushed into the container (20) from the upper opening (23) of the container (20). By this, the solution within the container (20) is compressed by the membrane tube (10) and flows into the membrane tube (10) through the lower opening (15) of the membrane tube (10) and the permeable membrane (14). The dissolved liquid (i.e., recovered liquid) passing through the permeable membrane (14) will be contained within the membrane tube (10); thus, there is no need to use a centrifuge or vacuum pump device to collect the dissolved liquid into another new container, and thus the automation implementation and operation can be simplified. The method of extracting biomolecules from the membrane tube is more easily implemented in an automated machine.

[0016] The foregoing description of the present invention is merely one of the possible methods for implementing the present invention. Modifications, substitutions, and combinations made to the foregoing embodiments can be easily completed by those skilled in the art and are within the scope of the concept of the present invention.

Claims

Claim 1 A device for extracting biomolecules, comprising: a membrane tube including an upper portion and a lower portion, wherein the upper portion has an upper opening and the lower portion accommodates a permeable membrane and has a lower opening; and a container including an upper portion and a lower portion, wherein the upper portion has an opening that allows the membrane tube to be pushed into the opening of the upper portion of the container, a liquid-tight seal is formed between the membrane tube and the container, and the lower portion of the container has a closed end. Claim 2 delete

Images