In article <1FA3363D96 at mercury.uark.edu>, DRHOADS at MERCURY.UARK.EDU ("Douglas Rhoads") says:
>>I would like to poll the this newsgroup as to what methods others
>might recommend for sample collection. We need to collect microliter
>amounts of blood for PCR analysis. Unfortunately, the samples should
>be most easily collected by untrained animal handlers. We have
>looked into cap tubes and the micro-vacutainer type collection tubes
>but all of these require using a lancet and then collection from skin
>surfaces. It would be really nice if there was a vacutainer/needle
>system that collects only 10-100 microliters but those systems start
>at around 2 ml. Since we are using PCR we are very concerned that
>with surface collection there can be cross-contamination from
>handlers hands and from dander on the skin surface. We also don't
>want to have to design something.
>>Does anyone have any suggestions where we might look??
>>//========================================================\\
>||Doug Rhoads || Dept. of Biological Sciences||
>||drhoads at mercury.uark.edu || 601 Science Engineering ||
>||drhoads at uafsysb.uark.edu || University of Arkansas ||
>||501-575-3251 || Fayetteville, AR 72701 ||
>==========================================================||
>|| My Dogma Just Got Run Over by Someone's Karma ||
>\\========================================================//
Doug,
I don't know of any small collection devices that would suit your purpose
but here is a little trick that might work for you. Smear some vaseline
or other hydrophobic grease at the sample site and do a skin stab with
a lancet through it. The blood will collect on the surface of the grease
as a little blob which can easily be taken up by capillarity into a
capillary tube. There is also a product which surgeons use called opsite
which sticks to the skin surface and can be cut or injected through.
I don't know if this would give enough freedom of contact from the skin
but might work.
Regards
Robert
