Claims for Patent: 8,563,264

Summary for Patent: 8,563,264

Title:	Sample preparation for environmental sampling
Abstract:	A system and method for preparing samples to test an environmental surface for an analyte of interest. The system can include a deformable self-supporting receptacle comprising a reservoir, and a loaded substrate positioned in the reservoir of the deformable self-supporting receptacle. The loaded substrate can include a substrate and a source collected from the surface. The method can include combining the loaded substrate and a diluent in the reservoir, and agitating the loaded substrate and the diluent to form a liquid composition comprising the source and the diluent.
Inventor(s):	Halverson; Kurt J. (Lake Elmo, MN), Joseph; Stephen C. P. (Woodbury, MN), Rajagopal; Raj (Woodbury, MN), Reier; Matthew D. (St. Paul, MN), Velasquez; David J. (Cannon Falls, MN), Zook; Cynthia D. (Husdon, WI), Chandrapati; Sailaja (Woodbury, MN)
Assignee:	3M Innovative Properties Company (St. Paul, MN)
Application Number:	12/743,245
Patent Claims:	1. A system for preparing samples to test a surface for an analyte of interest, the system comprising: a freestanding container comprising a first reservoir; a deformable self-supporting receptacle dimensioned to be received in the first reservoir of the freestanding container and comprising a second reservoir, the freestanding container being more rigid than the deformable self-supporting receptacle, the freestanding container including a base comprising an aperture formed therein through which the deformable self-supporting receptacle can be accessed; a loaded substrate positioned in the second reservoir of the deformable self-supporting receptacle, the loaded substrate comprising a substrate and a source collected from the surface, the substrate comprising at least one of a sponge, a wipe, a towel, a cloth, a mop head, a swab, a film, a brush, and a combination thereof; a diluent positioned in the second reservoir of the deformable self-supporting receptacle in fluid communication with the loaded substrate; and a liquid composition positioned in the second reservoir, the liquid composition comprising the source and the diluent. 2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a lid coupled to at least one of the freestanding container and the deformable self-supporting receptacle. 3. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the source and the loaded substrate includes the diluent. 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises at least one of a polymer, a ceramic, a fabric, a paper, a woven thereof, a nonwoven thereof, and a combination thereof. 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises at least one of a metal-coated web, an adhesive-coated web, an electrostatically-charged web, a fibrous web, a foam, a film, a cellulosic material, and a combination thereof. 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the analyte of interest comprises at least one of Salmonella spp., Acinetobacter spp., Vibrio spp., Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Clostridium perfringens, Campylobacter jejuni, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus anthracis, Bacillus cereus, Clostridium difficile, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus, Norovirus, Norwalk virus, Rotavirus, Adenovirus, and a combination thereof. 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the analyte of interest comprises at least one of staphylococcal enterotoxin, Bacillus diarrheal toxin, Clostridium difficile toxin, aflatoxin, peanut allergen, egg allergen, and a combination thereof. 8. The system of claim 1, wherein the diluent includes at least one of a surfactant, a rheological agent, an antimicrobial neutralizer, a nutrient, a growth inhibitor, a pH buffering agent, an enzyme, an indicator molecule, sterile water, an organic solvent, and a combination thereof. 9. The system of claim 1, wherein the source collected from the surface is collected from an area of the surface of at least about 10 cm.sup.2. 10. The system of claim 1, wherein the deformable self-supporting receptacle includes a sidewall, and wherein the sidewall includes a plurality of pleats or folds. 11. The system of claim 1, wherein the deformable self-supporting receptacle includes a sidewall, and wherein the sidewall includes at least one fold adapted to allow the sidewall to collapse at the at least one fold. 12. The system of claim 1, wherein the substrate is at least 100 cm.sup.2. 13. A method for preparing samples to test a surface for an analyte of interest, the method comprising: providing a loaded substrate, the loaded substrate comprising a substrate and a source collected from the surface, the substrate comprising at least one of a sponge, a wipe, a towel, a cloth, a mop head, a swab, a film, a brush, and a combination thereof; providing a sample preparation system comprising: a deformable self-supporting receptacle dimensioned to be received in a freestanding container, the freestanding container being more rigid than the deformable self-supporting receptacle, the freestanding container including a base comprising an aperture formed therein through which the deformable self-supporting receptacle can be accessed, the deformable self-supporting receptacle comprising a reservoir; combining the loaded substrate and a diluent in the reservoir; agitating the loaded substrate and the diluent to form a liquid composition comprising the source and the diluent; and removing a sample from the sample preparation system by applying pressure to the deformable self-supporting receptacle. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein agitating includes at least one of manual shaking, mechanical shaking, sonicating, vortex stirring, manual stirring, mechanical stirring, manual beating, mechanical beating, blending, kneading, tumbling, and a combination thereof. 15. The method of claim 13, wherein applying pressure to the deformable self-supporting receptacle includes applying external pressure to the deformable self-supporting receptacle via the aperture in the freestanding container. 16. The method of claim 13, wherein the sample preparation system further includes a lid, wherein the loaded substrate is coupled to the lid, and wherein combining the loaded substrate and the diluent in the reservoir includes coupling the lid to at least one of the deformable self-supporting receptacle and the freestanding container. 17. A system for preparing samples to test a surface for an analyte of interest, the system comprising: a freestanding container comprising a first reservoir; a deformable self-supporting receptacle dimensioned to be received in the first reservoir of the freestanding container and comprising a second reservoir, the freestanding container being more rigid than the deformable self-supporting receptacle; a loaded substrate positioned in the second reservoir of the deformable self-supporting receptacle, the loaded substrate comprising a substrate and a source collected from the surface, wherein the substrate is at least 100 cm.sup.2; a diluent positioned in the second reservoir of the deformable self-supporting receptacle in fluid communication with the loaded substrate; and a liquid composition positioned in the second reservoir, the liquid composition comprising the source and the diluent. 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the source collected from the surface is collected from an area of the surface of at least about 1 m.sup.2. 19. The system of claim 17, wherein at least one of the source and the loaded substrate includes the diluent. 20. The system of claim 17, wherein the substrate comprises at least one of a sponge, a wipe, a towel, a cloth, a mop head, a swab, a brush, and a combination thereof.

Details for Patent 8,563,264

Applicant	Tradename	Biologic Ingredient	Dosage Form	BLA	Approval Date	Patent No.	Expiredate
Emergent Biodefense Operations Lansing Llc	BIOTHRAX	anthrax vaccine adsorbed	Injection	103821	11/12/1998		2027-11-20
Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp.	ZOSTAVAX	zoster vaccine live	For Injection	125123	05/25/2006		2027-11-20
Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc.	PALFORZIA	peanut (arachis hypogaea) allergen powder	Powder	125696	01/31/2020		2027-11-20