Taking the Strain out of Pipetting

Seward Limited has developed Strainer bags for processing samples that produce large amounts of debris that can block pipettes. Irradiated sterile and available in 80 and 400ml sizes the Strainer bags are fully compatible with all laboratory blenders. Ideal for a variety of applications they deliver fully homogenous, virtually debris-free sample every time to ensure trouble-free pipetting and quality results.

Since the pore size on the integrated, robust strainer element within the Seward Strainer bag is 0.5mm, this also minimises the risk of pore blockage that can result in non-homogenous prepared sample. If pores become blocked then, instead of straining, a filtering effect can occur, meaning microbes may be eliminated from the final filtrate and produce an inaccurate final result. Seward Strainer bags overcome the risk of such sample filtering across a broad range of sample types. These range from hard shellfish to highly fatty samples, including cheese and minced beef, through to excessive debris producing products, such as ready meals.

“Our Strainer bags have been developed following initial work that we undertook with industry experts into combining the ‘stomaching’ and filtration element of sample preparation into a single process,” explained Dan Crothers, Marketing Manager, Seward. “After assessing several different options our research emphatically proved this process is not feasible, since filtering out all debris can result in non-homogenous sample which can skew final results. We found that straining to minimise debris is perfectly adequate to prevent pipette blocking issues, whilst ensuring that results give a true reflection of microbial loading.”