Manual DNA extraction methods are often very time-consuming and the outcome (success) strongly depends on the experience of the laboratory staff, the extraction method and the sample matrix. The extraction of nucleic acids is a major challenge for food labs caused by the high variability of sample matrices. Inhibitory substances like alcohols (ethanol, isopropanol), tensids (CTAB, SDS, Triton X100), salts (sodium chloride), plant ingredients (e.g. polyphenols, essential oils) as well as very low DNA content of highly processed sample material, may affect the PCR analysis negatively. These substances have to be removed during DNA extraction. Optimized sample preparation protocols for the DNA extraction are the basis for reproducible PCR results. SureFast® Mag PREP Food was developed for the isolation of animal and plant DNA from food and feed as well as bacterial DNA from culture enrichments with the TANBead Maelstrom-8 Autostage.
In a comprehensive study a variety of food and feed matrices was analysed using spin-filter and magnetic bead based extraction methods. Basis of the automated extraction was the SureFast® Mag PREP Food using TANBead Maelstrom-8 Autostage. The variances between differently extracted samples were 1-2 cp values maximum. Even difficult matrices like Wasabi and chocolate were successfully extracted with the automated solution. For some matrices even better PCR results with the bead-based extraction were obtained in comparison to the spin-filter based methods.
Furthermore, time is a key factor in a food analysing laboratory. Top priority is, besides a quality proven analysing result, the reduction of the time to result of a sample. Therefore a high efficiency in the work flow is essential. With TANBead Maelstrom-8 Autostage it is possible to extract up to eight samples in parallel. The figure shows that laboratories generate free capacities for their lab staff using automated extraction. These capacities can be used for additional tasks.
Usage of SureFast® Mag PREP Food in combination with TANBead Maelstrom-8 Autostage provides reproducible results and reduces the time as well as staff costs. Both SureFast® Mag PREP Food and TANBead Maelstrom-8 Autostage are available at CONGEN now. Usage of SureFast® Mag PREP Food in combination with TANBead Maelstrom-8 Autostage provides reproducible results and reduces the time as well as staff costs. Both SureFast® Mag PREP Food and TANBead Maelstrom-8 Autostage are available at CONGEN now.