The spin-column system for the isolation of nucleic acids (NAs) from multiple samples presents the inconvenience of repeated experimentation, time-consumption, and the risk of contamination in the process of the spin-column exchange. Herein, we propose a convenient and universal assay that can be used to diagnose multiple pathogens using a multi-sample preparation assay. The multi-sample preparation assay combines a 96-well filter/membrane plate, a bio-micromaterial lattice-like micro amine-functional diatomaceous earth (D-APDMS), and homobifunctional imidoesters (HI) for the processing of pathogen enrichment and extraction for multiple samples simultaneously. The purity and quantity of the extracted NAs from pathogens (E. coli and Brucella) using the proposed assay is superior to that of the commercialized spin-column kit. The assay also does not require the replacement of several collection tubes during the reaction processing. For the multi-sample testing, we used as many as six samples simultaneously with the proposed assay. This assay can simultaneously separate up to 96 NAs from one plate, and the use of multichannel pipettes allows faster and simpler experimentation. Therefore, we believe it is a convenient and easy process, and can be easily integrated with other detection methods for clinical diagnostics.
Keywords: multi-sample preparation assay; nucleic acid isolation; pathogen extraction.