Laboratory system and method for separating interfering substances contained in test samples

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11747244-B2
Application number	US-201916385712-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 16, 2019
Priority date	May 9, 2018
Publication date	Sep 5, 2023
Grant date	Sep 5, 2023

Abstract

A laboratory system and a method for separating interfering substances contained in test samples is presented. The laboratory system comprises separation vessels comprising solid surfaces and capturing molecules which are immobilized on the solid surfaces. The capturing molecules of the separation vessels are configured to bind interfering substances of laboratory tests of different analytical methods.

First claim

We claim:

1. A laboratory system for separating interfering substances contained in test samples, the laboratory system comprising:
a first separation vessel comprising a first capturing molecule immobilized on a first solid surface and configured to bind a first interfering substance contained in a first test sample of a laboratory test of a first analytical method;
a second separation vessel comprising a second capturing molecule immobilized on a second solid surface and configured to bind a second interfering substance contained in a second test sample of a laboratory test of a second analytical method, the second analytical method being different from the first analytical method;
at least one laboratory instrument comprising at least one separation station,
wherein the at least one separation station is configured to receive the first and second separation vessels and to separate test samples contained in the first and second separation vessels from the first and second solid surfaces of the first and second separation vessels to form first and second separated test samples,
wherein the at least one separation station comprises at least first and second separation devices, the first separation device being configured to extract a portion of the first separated test sample from the first separation vessel for performing the first analytical method, the second separation device being configured to extract a portion of the second separated test sample from the second separation vessel for performing the second analytical method,
each of the at least first and second separation devices being selected from the group consisting of a pipetting device, a centrifuge, a rotor, a magnetic separation and incubation station, a filtration station, and combinations thereof,

a data base, wherein the data base comprises at least one test sample record, wherein the test sample record comprises a test sample identity and at least one test sample attribute, and wherein at least one of the at least one test sample attribute is a selective test sample attribute; and
a management unit, wherein the management unit is communicatively connected to the laboratory instrument, wherein the management unit comprises a processor and a computer-readable medium provided with instructions to select a test sample based on the at least one selective test sample attribute, to assign an interference separation protocol to the selected test sample, and to send an order based on the selected test sample and assigned interference separation protocol to the laboratory instrument.

2. The laboratory system according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first and the second separation vessel is a rotatable separation vessel.

3. The laboratory system according to claim 1 , wherein the first and/or the second solid surface is comprised by the inner surface of the separation vessel.

4. The laboratory system according to claim 1 , wherein the separation vessel comprises a filter and wherein the solid surface is comprised by the filter.

5. The laboratory system according to claim 1 , wherein the separation vessel comprises beads and wherein the solid surface is comprised by the surface of the beads.

6. The laboratory system according to claim 1 , wherein the first and the second analytical methods comprise different detection methods with different preceding test reactions,
wherein the detection methods are selected from the group consisting of photometry, spectroscopy, fluorometry, turbidimetry, nephelometry, luminescence measurement, fluorescence polarimetry, flame photometry, atomic absorption photometry, potentiometry, amperometry, coulometry, resistance measurement, flow cytometry, coulter method, radiometry, imaging method, mass spectrometry, visual inspection, gravimetry, thermometry, and
wherein the preceding test reactions are selected from the group consisting of a chemical test reaction, immunological test reaction, enzymatic test reaction, molecular biological test reaction, dye staining, coagulation test reaction, agglutination test reaction, and combinations thereof.

7. The laboratory system according to claim 1 , wherein the test sample contained in the first separation vessel is a first test sample type and the test sample contained in the second separation vessel is a second test sample type and wherein the first test sample type is different from the second test sample type.

8. The laboratory system according to claim 1 , wherein the laboratory instrument further comprises a test sample output area, wherein the test sample output area is operatively coupled to a laboratory transport system, wherein the laboratory transport system is operatively coupled to at least first and second analytical modules, wherein the first analytical module is different from the second analytical module.

9. The laboratory system according to claim 1 , wherein the laboratory instrument further comprises a control unit, wherein the control unit comprises a processor and a computer-readable medium provided with at least first and second interference separation protocols, wherein the first interference separation protocol comprises at least one processing step to separate a test sample contained in the at least first separation vessel from the interfering substance of a laboratory test of a first analytical method, wherein the second interference separation protocol comprises at least one processing step to separate a test sample contained in the at least second separation vessel from the interfering substance of a laboratory test of a second analytical method, and wherein the processor is configured to control the laboratory instrument according to the at least first and second interference separation protocols.

10. The laboratory system according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one selective test sample attribute is selected from the group consisting of a laboratory test ordered for the test sample, patient information associated with the test sample, an invalid test result, and a clinically inconsistent result of the test sample.

11. The laboratory system according to claim 1 , wherein the laboratory instrument further comprises at least a first separation vessel storage section and a second separation vessel storage section, wherein the first separation vessel storage section and the second separation vessel storage section are separated from each other, and wherein the at least first separation vessel is stored in the at least first separation vessel storage section and the at least second separation vessel is stored in the at least second separation vessel storage section.

Assignees

• Roche Diagnostics Operations Inc

Inventors

• Glauser Michael
• Kappelhoff Dietmar
• Khayali Youssef

Classifications

• G01N1/34 Primary

  Purifying; Cleaning {(processes or apparatus for extracting or separating nucleic acids from biological samples C12N15/1003)} · CPC title

• B01L3/502

  with fluid transport, e.g. in multi-compartment structures · CPC title

• G01N1/405

  by adsorption or absorption · CPC title

• G01N1/4055

  by solubility techniques · CPC title

• G01N1/4077

  by other techniques involving separation of suspended solids · CPC title