JPH11183482A - Reaction container - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent contamination due to carry over by forming a rotary member coupled with a discharge pipe above a container such that the liquid discharge channel is controlled by the rotary member thereby enclosing the structure. SOLUTION: A reaction container being employed in an automatic analyzer for organism sample comprises a reaction tank 1, a drain cup 2 for storing waste liquid, and a tube 3 for finally collecting a target liquid wherein a rotary member 6 coupled with a discharge pipe 5 is fitted in the upper part of the tank 1. A reagent or a sample liquid is injected from a through pipe 10 provided for the rotary member 6 into the reaction tank 1 by means of a syringe, for example. Upon finishing a specified reaction, pressure is applied from the pipe 10 to discharge the liquid in the tank 1 to the drain cup 2 along a discharge channel defined by the discharge pipe 5 and the rotary member 6. When the member 6 is turned by 180 deg. through a rotary arm mechanism, the liquid in the tank 1 is discharged to the tube 3.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic analyzer for automatically and chemically analyzing a predetermined component contained in a biological sample such as blood or urine, or a sample processing apparatus for extracting a predetermined component from a biological sample or the like. The present invention relates to a reaction vessel used.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a chemical analysis apparatus or a sample processing apparatus, a reaction vessel for accommodating and reacting a sample and a reagent is washed and dried after analysis or treatment, and is continuously circulated. There is an advantage that the reaction container can be repeatedly and effectively used as compared with a disposable device.

[0003] However, in the biochemistry field, particularly in analyzers for immunological measurement and genetic diagnosis, biological samples such as blood and urine are treated as target samples, and therefore, viruses that may be contained in these target samples are used. From the viewpoint of prevention of danger such as the above, the reaction container is generally handled in a disposable form.

As a conventional reaction vessel often used in these fields, for example, as described in Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei 4-31945, a microtube with a lid made of plastic is called. Things. In this container, the lid is open when the reagent is injected and discharged, and the lid is used in a closed state in a reaction process in which the liquid in the reaction container is heated at a certain temperature for a certain time.

[0005] In JP-A-8-43400,
A reaction container used for an analysis method utilizing a specific binding reaction such as immunological measurement and gene diagnosis has been proposed. This reaction container is characterized by devising the reaction container to promote the specific binding reaction, but has a structure in which a lid is not formed during the reaction.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 63-17172 proposes a reaction vessel having a structure in which a liquid can be discharged from the bottom of a reaction vessel using a valve member, and the liquid can be efficiently discharged after the reaction. However, this also has a structure in which no lid is placed on the container during the reaction.

[0007]

In the conventional analyzers for immunological measurement and genetic diagnosis, a plurality of target specimens may be analyzed simultaneously. At this time, since one reaction container is used for one sample, it is general that a number of reaction containers are installed in these analyzers and analysis is performed simultaneously.

[0008] Therefore, a plurality of reaction vessels are installed in a limited space, and a step of performing analysis at the same time is performed. For example, in the process of injecting and discharging a chemical solution, if the above-described reaction container is used, since the operation is performed with the lid open, it is contained in a biological sample such as blood or urine as a target specimen. There was a risk of contamination due to scattering of substances having risk factors and resulting carryover.

Further, in the conventional reaction vessel, liquid injection,
Since the tip is inserted by a pipettor operation at the time of discharge, the structure has a risk of mixing a factor which inhibits the reaction system from the outside into the reaction vessel.

[0010] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems that occur in an open-system reaction vessel often used in conventional analyzers for immunological measurement and gene diagnosis. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a new reaction container that prevents contamination due to carryover.

[0011]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present inventors have conducted intensive studies, and as a result, have been able to prevent contamination due to carry-over by making the structure of the reaction vessel a closed system. The inventors have found that this is possible, and have reached the present invention.

That is, according to the present invention, a discharge pipe for discharging a liquid in a reaction vessel, and a rotating member connected to the discharge pipe are formed above the reaction vessel, and the discharge pipe and the rotating pipe are formed. A reaction vessel, wherein a flow path passing through the member is configured.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention relates to a reaction vessel used for processing or analyzing a predetermined component contained in a biological sample. Biological samples are blood, serum, buffy coat,
It refers to those widely derived from living organisms such as urine, feces, semen, cells, and cultured organisms. The predetermined component refers to a biological component such as a nucleic acid or a protein.

According to the present invention, a discharge pipe for discharging a liquid in a reaction vessel as described above, and a rotating member connected to the discharge pipe are formed at an upper portion of the vessel so that the liquid can be discharged.
It is characterized in that a flow path passing through the discharge pipe and the rotating member is formed, and the discharging flow path of the liquid is controlled by the rotating member.

Preferably, a pipe is formed integrally with a rotating member formed on the upper part of the reaction vessel, and the liquid in the vessel is discharged by the pressure applied from the upper part of the penetrating pipe. More preferably, a driving means is provided outside the container.

In the present invention, the reaction tank portion is a portion for performing a reaction of processing or analysis of a target component from a biological sample, and the drain cup portion is a liquid containing unnecessary components when the reaction of the processing or analysis is performed. Is the part that collects
The collection tube refers to a part for collecting a target reaction solution. Further, the support plate refers to a plate-like member for holding the reaction tank portion, the drain cup portion, and the collection tube.

According to the above-mentioned means, when injecting the liquid through the above-mentioned through pipe, the liquid can be injected without inserting the tip of the pipetter into the container, and the pressure applied from the through pipe along the discharge flow path. The liquid can be discharged.

The reaction vessel of the present invention is configured as described above. Here, examples of the material of the reaction container include, for example, glass, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride and the like which have been conventionally used for applications such as immunological measurement and genetic diagnosis. Among them, polypropylene is particularly preferable because it does not adsorb the target component. As for the shape, the reaction tank portion is preferably conical, the drain cup portion is cylindrical, and the recovery tube is preferably a commonly used microtube.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view showing an embodiment of the reaction vessel of the present invention. The reaction vessel is a reaction vessel 3 and a drain cup 2 for storing unnecessary waste water, a tube 3 for finally collecting a target solution, a lid 8 for forming a flow path to the collection tube 3, and inserted into the upper portion of the reaction vessel 1. The rotating member 6 includes a discharge pipe 5 connected and connected to the rotating member 6, a cap 9 for suppressing the vertical play of the rotating member 6, and a support plate 4 for supporting the reaction container assembly. Reference numeral 7 denotes a drain cup lid, and reference numeral 10 denotes a through pipe.

FIG. 2 shows a detailed exploded view of the reaction vessel of the present invention. In the figure, 1 to 10 are as described above.
Reference numeral 11 denotes a drain-side arm of the reaction tank, 12 denotes a tube-side arm of the reaction tank, and 16 denotes a hole. FIG. 3 is a view showing a support plate for supporting the reaction vessel of the present invention. In the figure, 13 is a round hole,
14 and 15 are U-shaped notches.

Using these, the structure of the reaction vessel will be described in more detail. The reaction vessel is assembled on the basis of the support plate 4 shown in FIG. The reaction tank 1 is inserted and fitted into the center hole 13 of the support plate 4. U-shaped notch 1 on one side of support plate 4
The drain cup 2 is inserted into the U-shaped portion, and the arm 11 of the reaction tank 1 is engaged with the hole 16 provided in the drain cup.
Is fixed to the support plate 4. A lid 7 having a small hole for venting air is inserted into the upper part of the drain cup 2.

On the arm 12 of the reaction tank 1, a lid 8 forming a flow path to the tube 3 is inserted and fitted and fixed. The tube 3 is inserted and fitted into the U-shaped notch 15 of the support plate 4 and fixed.

Next, a rotating member 6 connected and connected to the discharge pipe 5 is inserted and fitted into the upper part of the reaction tank 1. A penetrating pipe 10 is integrally formed with the rotating member 6 and is used as a flow path for injecting a liquid into the reaction tank 1 and applying pressure. Further, a cap 9 provided with a screw on the inner side is fixed to the reaction tank 1 by screw tightening in order to eliminate vertical play of the rotating member 6.

FIG. 4 shows the rotating member 6. FIG. 4A is a top view, and FIG. 4B is a side view. The discharge pipe 5 is connected to the flow path 17 of the rotating member to form a discharge flow path. Further, the inner diameter of the penetrating pipe 10 provided in the rotating member has a tapered structure having different diameters so that the inner diameter is larger outside the reaction tank and smaller inside.

Next, a method of using the above-described reaction vessel will be described. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram for injecting a reagent or a sample solution into a reaction container. For example, when injecting a liquid into the present reaction vessel using a dispensing means such as a syringe or a pipettor (not shown), the dispensing nozzle tip 18 (pipe nozzle or tip, etc.) is inserted into a through pipe provided on a rotating member. Although it is positioned, it is not inserted up to the inside of the reaction tank. Since the liquid is injected in this state, there is little danger that factors that inhibit the reaction system will be mixed into the reaction tank from outside.

After the liquid is injected, unnecessary liquid is discharged through a reaction process as shown in FIG. FIG.
A pressurizing nozzle tip 19 connected to a pressurizing pump (not shown) is installed at the entrance of the through pipe of the rotating member.
When pressure is applied from the outside in this state, the liquid inside the reaction tank is pushed out along a discharge flow path formed by a discharge pipe and a rotating member, and is discharged to a drain cup portion.

The gas in the pressurized reaction tank passes through the hole of the lid of the drain cup and passes through the exhaust recovery nozzle 20.
, And is collected at one location such as a waste bottle (not shown). In order to perform such a discharge process, there is no scattering of risk factors considered to be possessed by the target sample to the outside of the container, and therefore, even if a plurality of samples are simultaneously processed, no contamination occurs, and Performs safe and reliable analysis and processing.

In FIG. 6, if the rotating member 6 is rotated 180 degrees by a driving means provided outside, for example, a rotating arm mechanism linked to a motor, the liquid in the reaction tank is turned into a tube by the same operation as described above. It is discharged to 3. Therefore, the reaction container has a structure capable of selectively discharging the liquid in the reaction tank to a plurality of locations according to conditions to be used, such as immunodiagnosis and genetic diagnosis.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications or changes can be made. For example,
In the above embodiment, the discharge destination is described as two places of the drain cup and the tube. However, it is very easy to attach a structure having a structure for receiving the discharged liquid at three places and four places around the reaction tank. Has the same effect as the above-described reaction vessel.

[0031]

The discharge pipe for discharging the liquid in the reaction vessel as described above, and a rotating member connected to the discharge pipe are formed above the reaction vessel, and the discharge pipe and the rotation pipe are formed. The use of a reaction vessel with a flow path that passes through a rotating member can prevent contamination and significantly reduce the risk of contamination of the reaction system from the outside, compared to tubes that are used in conventional open systems. Can be reduced. Therefore, it can be used for analysis and processing of immunological measurement and gene diagnosis with high reliability.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic sectional view showing the configuration of an embodiment of the reaction vessel of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view showing a detailed structure of the reaction vessel of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a view showing a support plate for supporting the reaction vessel of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a rotating member of the reaction vessel in the present invention ((a) top view, (b) side view).

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram for explaining a liquid injection step using a reaction container according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram for explaining a liquid discharging step using a reaction vessel according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Reaction tank 2 Drain cup 3 Tube 4 Support plate 5 Discharge pipe 6 Rotating member 7 Drain cup lid 8 Flow path forming lid 9 Cap 10 Through pipe 11 Drain side arm of reaction tank 12 Tube side arm of reaction tank 13 Round hole 14 , 15 U-shaped notch 16 hole 17 flow path of rotating member 18 chip 19 pressurizing nozzle 20 exhaust nozzle

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A discharge pipe for discharging a liquid in a reaction vessel, and a rotating member connected to the discharge pipe at an upper portion of the reaction vessel, and a flow passing through the discharge pipe and the rotating member. A reaction vessel comprising a passage. 2. The reaction vessel according to claim 1, wherein a discharge pipe that penetrates the rotating member formed at the top of the reaction vessel is integrally formed by a support. 3. The reaction vessel according to claim 1, wherein driving means is provided outside the reaction vessel.