Purigen Biosystems, a provider of next-generation technologies for extracting and purifying nucleic acids from biological samples, has announced the launch of the Ionic FFPE to Pure RNA Kit, the company reported. In one hour with minimal hands-on time, scientists are able to purify and concentrate higher yields of RNA, including messenger RNA (mRNA) and microRNA (miRNA), from precious formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue specimens.
Currently, the vast majority of clinical samples used in oncology research are stored as FFPE tissues, which often contain degraded or fragmented nucleic acids. Labor-intensive workflows are required to purify nucleic acids from these samples prior to molecular analysis. In contrast to traditional column-based methods, the Ionic FFPE to Pure RNA Kit simplifies and accelerates this process, enabling researchers and clinicians to extract both mRNA and miRNA in a single automated workflow. The resulting RNA is pure, abundant, and ready for analysis by any downstream technique such as next-generation sequencing (NGS) or PCR for the rapid discovery of genes that may be predictive of a disease outcome or drug response, or identification of known gene expression profiles.
“There is a pressing biomedical need to generate high-quality information from the wealth of FFPE samples available in biobanks and other sample collections. The Ionic FFPE to Pure RNA Kit will enable scientists to maximize the amount of actionable information extracted from these precious but challenging clinical samples,” said Barney Saunders, PhD, CEO of Purigen Biosystems. “Access to higher yields of high-quality mRNA and miRNA from a single workflow that requires minimal hands-on time can accelerate all of the research projects dependent on FFPE samples.”
The Ionic FFPE to Pure RNA Kit utilizes the company’s core isotachophoresis (ITP) technology and runs on the Ionic Purification System, a compact benchtop instrument that enables the automated extraction of nucleic acids with increased yields and improved purity from a wide range of sample types. Biological samples are gently lysed and then loaded into the Ionic Fluidic Chip. The Ionic System then applies an electric field to the chip, and nucleic acids are isolated in their natural, native form using ITP technology. The nucleic acids are not denatured or dehydrated or bound and stripped from fixed surfaces. The process minimizes fragmentation and eliminates any bead or buffer contamination.
The Ionic FFPE to Pure RNA Kit consists of six chips and a reagent set with all necessary enzymes and buffers to perform RNA extraction from as many as 48 FFPE scrolls or slides in 60 minutes.
