System, apparatus and method for material preparation and/or handling

Abstract

Oscillating angularly rotating a container containing a material may cause the material to be separate. Denser or heavier material may unexpectedly tend to collected relatively close to the axis of rotation, while less dense or light material may tend to collect relatively away from the axis of rotation. Oscillation along an arcuate path provides high lysing efficiency. Alternatively, a micromotor may drive an impeller removably received in a container. Lysing may be implemented in batch mode, flow-through stop or semi-batch mode, or flow-through continuous mode. Lysing particulate material may exceed material to be lysed or lysed material and/or air may be essentially eliminated from a chamber to increase lysing efficiency.

1 - 110 . (canceled) 
     
     
         111 . An article to perform flow-through lysis by oscillation on material to be lysed, the article comprising:
 at least one wall forming at least one chamber having a first opening and at least a second opening spaced from the first opening, the first and the second openings to provide fluid communication into the chamber from an exterior thereof;   a particulate lysing material received in the chamber, the particulate material including a plurality of particles sized to lyse a material to be lysed and having a combined particulate volume;   a first filter received in the chamber between the first opening and the particulate material, the first filter having a plurality of apertures sized to substantially pass the material to be lysed and to retain the particulate material;   a second filter received in the chamber between the second opening and the particulate material, the second filter having a plurality of apertures sized to pass the material to be lysed and to retain the particulate material, wherein the first filter and the second filter form a particulate retainment area therebetween having a volume sufficiently greater than said combined particulate volume to permit the plurality of particles to move relative to one another to provide shear forces when in use to perform lysis by oscillation on material to be lysed;   a first tube coupled to provide fluid communication to the first opening for material to be lysed; and   a second tube coupled to provide fluid communication from the second opening for material that has been lysed;   wherein the first tube and the second tube do not restrict the oscillation of the chamber and do not resonate in response to the oscillation.   
     
     
         112 . The article of  claim 111 , further comprising:
 an attachment structure proximate the first opening.   
     
     
         113 . The article of  claim 111 , further comprising:
 a first attachment structure to attach the first tube to the first opening; and   a second attachment structure to attach the second tube to the second opening.   
     
     
         114 . The article of  claim 111 , further comprising:
 a nipple about the first opening.   
     
     
         115 . The article of  claim 111 , further comprising:
 a first nipple to attach the first tube about the first opening; and   a second nipple to attach the second tube about the second opening.   
     
     
         116 . The article of  claim 111  wherein the at least one wall is elongated and has a first end and a second end opposed to the first end. 
     
     
         117 . The article of  claim 116  wherein the first opening is at the first end and the second opening is at the second end. 
     
     
         118 . The article of  claim 116  wherein the at least one wall is cylindrically tubular. 
     
     
         119 . The article of  claim 111  wherein the particulate material is a plurality of beads. 
     
     
         120 . The article of  claim 119  wherein the plurality of beads includes at least one of ceramic beads, glass beads, zirconium beads, metal beads, plastic beads, and sand. 
     
     
         121 . The article of  claim 119  wherein the plurality of beads have diameters in the range of approximately 100 microns. 
     
     
         122 . The article of  claim 119  wherein the plurality of beads have diameters in the range of 50 microns to 150 microns. 
     
     
         123 . The article of  claim 111  wherein when in use a volume of the particulate material is greater than a volume of material to be lysed. 
     
     
         124 . The article of  claim 123  wherein when in use there is essentially no air in the chamber. 
     
     
         125 . The article of  claim 123  wherein the chamber has a volume that holds less than 60 μl of the material to be lysed. 
     
     
         126 . The article of  claim 123  wherein the chamber has a volume that holds approximately 10 μl to approximately 40 μl of the material to be lysed. 
     
     
         127 . The article of  claim 111  wherein the first and the second filters are fixed to the wall.