Qiagen launched three nucleic acid extraction kits that use fewer components and produce less waste than existing ones. They use both recycled plastics and space-saving chemical concentrates, the company said in a news release.
The products are part of the company’s new QIAwave product line.
The QIAwave RNA Mini Kit, QIAwave DNA Blood & Tissue Kit and QIAwave Plasmid Miniprep Kit use up to 63% less plastic and up to 42% less cardboard than Qiagen’s most popular kits for extracting DNA, RNA and plasmid DNA from samples.
“QIAwave products are designed in collaboration with our customers to tackle the persistent problem of laboratory waste faced by scientists all over the world,” said Thomas Schweins, Senior Vice President and Head of Life Sciences at Qiagen.
The new QIAwave products feature fewer components, waste tubes made from 100% recycled plastic, and buffer concentrates in smaller bottles, rather than ready-to-go mixes. More compact kits and new ways of packing them reduce the amount of cardboard needed to box them up. Instructions for re-using some components are available online.
