JPH02269599A - Seal breaker - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To form slits through the seal foil of a reaction container with weak force by providing at least three linear edges at the lower end of a shaft main body and in a position where the shaft is divided at equal angles in its circumferential direction, the edges each extending inwardly and downwardly from periphery to center of its shaft, and using the center portion where these edges are assembled as an edged end protruding downwards. CONSTITUTION:An edged jig is moved downwards and four linear edges 4 assembled at the lower end portion 3b of the shaft main body 3 of the jig are put on a seal foil 6 provided at the opening of the upper face of a reaction container so that slits are formed through the seal foil 6 from its center. The slits are enlarged radially outwardly with downward movement of the edged jig. The lower end portion 3b of the shaft main body is put on the seal foil 6 provided with the slits, and the section of the seal foil is enlarged radially outwardly and downwardly. The section of the seal foil 6 provided with four slits is then pressed against the inner wall of the reaction container by downward movement of the edged jig to its bottom dead center, whereby breaking and opening work of the seal foil 6 is completed. In this case, four linear edges 4 are each extended inwardly and downwardly from periphery to center of its shaft.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention is used in the field of biochemical analysis to develop a seal that breaks the sealing foil of a reaction container used to detect and measure physiologically active substances in a sample. It is related to breakers.

(Background of the Invention) The present invention will be described below using as an example the measurement of biochemical reactions, particularly the measurement of enzyme immunoreactions in which an enzyme is typically applied as a label for an antigen-antibody reaction conjugate. Enzyme immunoassay is one of the immunological techniques for detecting and measuring trace amounts of physiologically active substances, and research and development have been particularly active in recent years.

Various methods are known for immunoassay, but the in-shell method involves binding the antibody (or antigen) to an antigen (or antibody) immobilized on an insoluble carrier through an antigen-antibody reaction, and then A complex is generated by an antigen-antibody reaction by contacting the antibody (conjugate) with an enzyme attached as a label, and then an optically detectable change occurs under the active action of the enzyme as the label. By adding a substrate (e.g. 4-methylumbelliferone phosphate, varanitriphenyl phosphate, etc.), the degradation of this substrate catalyzed by an enzyme (e.g. alkaline phosphatase) is detected as an optical change;
The ultimate goal is to quantify trace amounts of antibodies or antigens in the target sample. The method described above is called the Sand-Deutsch method, but various enzyme immunoassay methods have been known in the past.

When performing the above operations on a large number of samples, use a device with a large number of cells such as a multi-titer plate, and perform the antigen-antibody reaction and substrate decomposition described above for each sample in each cell. This method using a multi-quanta plate or the like is suitable for batch processing of measurements of the same test item on a large number of samples.

However, if the test items change from time to time for each sample, it is necessary to change the fixed antigen or enzyme-labeled antibody added to the cell, which requires time and effort to prepare in advance for the actual measurement. There are drawbacks.

Therefore, in the practical operation of the enzyme immunoassay method described above, the following systems have been proposed for the purpose of improving operability and operational efficiency. This proposed system is
For example, as shown in FIG. 6, a cup-shaped container 5 is filled with beads 8 (insoluble carriers) on which a specific antibody (or antigen) corresponding to a preconceived test item is immobilized, and a cup-shaped container 5 is opened. The reaction container 10 is basically constructed by sealing the reaction container 10 with a sealing foil 6 for the purpose of dustproofing, etc., and 10 groups of multiple types of reaction containers filled with beads etc. on which different antibodies are immobilized for each test item are used. Prepare in advance, and at the time of actual measurement, the corresponding type of reaction container 10 is taken out from each group for each test item required according to the target sample, and these are placed in a predetermined carrier (for example, the reaction container 10). This is a system in which the samples are aligned and supported by a plate (not shown) in which a large number of holes are formed into which the samples are fitted, and then fed into the measuring device.

This system has the characteristic that it is extremely effective, especially for measurements with automated equipment.

By the way, in this system, it is naturally necessary to remove the sealing foil 6 that seals the reaction vessel stem as described above before measurement, and in an automated system, this is automatically done as part of a series of operations. Because it is desirable to do so,
Apparatus or seal breakers have been proposed for seal foil removal.

(Prior Art) As a conventional seal breaker, one shown in FIG. 4, for example, is known. This is done by moving a shaft whose lower end is wedge-shaped (hereinafter referred to as wedge-shaped body 1) from above the reaction vessel 10 and applying the sharp lower end 2 of this wedge-shaped body 1 to the center of the sealing foil 6. , while moving the sealing foil 6 downward, tear the sealing foil 6 in all directions, press the section against the inner wall of the container, and remove the reaction container 10.
The structure is such that the seal can be released.

The wedge-shaped body 1 that performs this operation has an inverted conical shape with a pointed lower end 2 as described above, and the root of this inverted conical part has a diameter slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the reaction vessel. Also, the vertical movement mechanism for moving the wedge-shaped body 1 downward is comprised of beads 8 filled in the bottom of the container 10. An appropriate seal breaker is constructed by setting its movement so that it is stopped at a lower position that does not interfere with the freeze-dried reagent 7, etc. (see FIG. 5).

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) By the way, the sealing foil 6 of the reaction container is a foil that does not easily tear during storage, transportation, etc., and is strong enough to ensure sealing performance, such as aluminum. Usually, foil or a plus deck film coated with aluminum 1 um is used. For this reason, in order to break this seal foil, the wedge-shaped body 1 has a sharp lower end, and it is necessary to move the wedge-shaped body 1 downward with a considerably large force to apply sufficient tearing force. Therefore, a motor with a large driving force was required.

In addition, the wedge-shaped body 1 gradually becomes less sharp when the sealing foil is repeatedly ruptured, so it is recommended to replace the wedge-shaped body 1 frequently, or to use a material such as expensive ceramics or stainless steel that does not change its sharpness. It may be possible to use , but even this will require replacement in the long run.
There was a lot of waste in terms of cost.

Furthermore, even when constructing a relatively small or simple device, it is difficult to change the strength of the reaction vessel and the seal foil for sealing it to satisfy the required performance, so it is difficult to seal For breakers, equipment similar to large equipment is required, and seal breakers are used.
The disadvantage is that the burden becomes heavier.

In view of the above, the present invention divides the structure of the device into a part that performs the action of making cuts in the seal foil and a part that performs the action of spreading the cut seal foil, thereby creating a relatively small device. One of the objects of this invention is to provide a seal breaker that can reliably break the seal foil using driving force.

Another object of the present invention is that when the sharpness of the blade of the jig for breaking the seal foil deteriorates, the replacement can be limited to only one part, and therefore the number of parts to be prepared is small and the cost is low. The objective is to provide a seal breaker that is less burdensome.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The seal breaker of the present invention, which has been made to achieve the above object, is characterized by sealing the top opening with a seal foil and filling the inside with a filler for biochemical reaction measurement. This is a seal breaker in which a bladed jig is moved downward from above to cut the seal foil into a reaction vessel, and the bladed jig is inserted into the top opening of the reaction vessel. A shaft body that moves up and down and has a shaft portion with a slightly small diameter,
At least three linear blades are attached to the lower end of the shaft body and extend inwardly and downwardly from the peripheral edge of the shaft toward the center at positions divided at approximately equal angles in the circumferential direction; A convex part is provided between the main bodies and has a downward hemispherical or inverted conical shape, and the central part where the plurality of blades gather has a pointed end that projects downward. It is in the place where it is done. Although the convex portion may be formed by assembling another member to the shaft body, it is appropriate to form it as the lower end portion of the shaft body.

The blade of the bladed jig constituting the seal breaker of the present invention has the function of making a cut in the sealing foil of the reaction vessel, and the lower end of the shaft body is bulged downward in a hemispherical or inverted conical shape, for example. The shank functions to spread out the notched seal foil and push it against the inner wall of the reaction vessel, and the diameter of the shank is appropriate to perform this function. , the downwardly bulging shape of the lower end, the shape of the blade, and the orientation of the assembly are selected as appropriate. For example, it is appropriate to use a thin plate-shaped blade with its width facing vertically so that the width edge is the edge of the blade, and place this against the sealing foil to make a cut. It is recommended to tilt the blade diagonally so that the cut is made from one point on the surface of the foil (for example, the blade is removably supported around the circumference of the shaft body, and the blade is tilted downward from this support toward the center of the shaft). It is appropriate to provide a plurality of blades with sharp tips in the center.The shape of the lower end of the shaft body is as follows:
It may be a hemispherical square, a triangular pyramid, a square pyramid, or a polygonal pyramid or seven cones.

It is necessary to provide at least three or more blades, but preferably four blades (in this case, a flat surface In other words, the four blades mentioned above (in other words, essentially two blades) can be formed by joining together two blades that have a long diameter.In this case, three sheets of sealing foil are used. Since the sections are smaller than when cut open, it is easier and more reliable to press the sections against the inner wall of the container, creating a favorable condition for subsequent measurement operations.These 4 pieces (actually 2 pieces)
When assembling the blade, it is appropriate that the shape of the lower end of the shaft body be hemispherical or quadrangular pyramidal.

The material of the blade is preferably made of metal such as stainless steel, but is not particularly limited thereto.

(Function) The seal breaker of the present invention has the above-mentioned configuration, so that
Even with a fairly strong sealing foil, multiple linear blades can make multiple radial cuts with a relatively weak force, and the foil with these cuts is pushed out with the lower end of the shaft body to open the reaction vessel. Can be pressed against the inner wall.

(Example) The present invention will be described below based on embodiments shown in the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a jig with a blade for a seal breaker which is an embodiment of the present invention, and the shaft body 3 includes a cylindrical shaft portion 3a and a lower end of the cylindrical shaft portion 3a. The upper part of the shaft part 3a is assembled with a vertical movement drive mechanism (not shown), and is configured to move upwardly with respect to the vertical direction in the figure. position and the bottom dead center position where it moves downward to rupture the sealing foil of the reaction vessel.

4 is a radial 4 attached to the lower end of this shaft body 3.
In this example, by combining two blades whose planar dimension is the diameter length of the shaft body 3 as shown in the figure and whose frontal shape is approximately . Four blades are formed in the radial direction. These blades 4
is vertical so that the width direction of the thin plate coincides with the vertical plane. In order to make this blade as useful as possible, the upper end of the 7-shaped blade should be inserted into a slit cut into the shaft, for example, carried by the shaft body 3. Alternatively, the upper ends of both arms of the figure 7 shape of the blade may be provided with inward protrusions, and both arms of the blade may have elasticity that allows them to expand slightly to the outside of the V shape. It may be made to fit elastically into a groove formed in the part. Alternatively, the upper end of the blade may be screwed onto the shaft of the shaft body, and in this case, the upper ends of both arms of the blade are twisted 90 degrees so that they line up with the outer surface of the shaft. It is also preferable. It is preferable to assemble the blade a little apart from the lower end of the shaft body.

The two diameter-long blades in this example are approximately 45° to the vertical plane.
It is provided so that it is inclined at an angle of 30' to form a pointed tip at the center of the shaft.
The angle is appropriately selected and set from the range of ~60°. The two blades in this example intersect at the center, so the height positions of the two blades may be shifted in this area.
The two may be connected by cutting half-width slits so that they fit into each other and fit into each other.
Alternatively, the two may be connected to each other at this intersection using a clip or a screw. In addition, when using blades having a long plane radius, a small circular block having radial slit grooves formed on the lower surface into which a plurality of blades are fitted may be used as a connector. If a blade protrudes from the bottom surface of this circular block, the seal foil 3b, lower end 4: blade 6, seal foil 8: beads 5: container body 7: freeze-dried reagent 10: reaction container'' 9 Figure (a) b) Figure (C) (d) (a) Figure (C) 11 Figure

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. For a reaction vessel whose top opening is sealed with a sealing foil and a filler for biochemical reaction measurement is filled inside, a jig with blades for cutting open the sealing foil is moved downward from above. This seal breaker has a bladed jig that includes a vertically movable shaft body that has a shaft portion with a slightly small diameter that can be fitted into the top opening of the reaction vessel, and a shaft body that can be moved up and down. At least three linear blades are attached to the lower end of the shaft and extend inward and downward from the peripheral edge of the shaft toward the center at positions divided at approximately equal angles in the circumferential direction, and between the blades and the shaft body, A seal comprising a convex portion having a hemispherical or inverted conical shape facing downward, and a central portion where the plurality of blades gather forms a pointed end projecting downward. breaker. 2. The seal breaker according to claim 1, wherein the hemispherical or inverted conical convex portion is integrally formed at the lower end of the shaft body. 3. The seal breaker according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the blade is detachably supported on the shaft body. 4. The seal breaker according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the blade is composed of four blades arranged in a planar cross shape.