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>
No Cross Contamination
The samples are homogenized (or mixed) non-invasively. The
sample tubes are kept closed during agitation, as the
samples are processed. There are no probes to
clean between samples.
>
Samples Stay
Cool
The instrument uses very
little power due to the unique, patented design.
It uses a small DC motor to agitate the individual
tubes, not ultrasonics. Also, because
the motor does not need to agitate any heavy
platforms or plates, it is small and will last for
years.
>
Convenient to Use
Simply place your tail snips and other tissue samples or cell cultures and some beads in standard
high quality polypropylene tubes, and load the tubes into the
Bullet Blender™. Set the duration (typically a few
minutes) and speed (vigorousness). There are no probes to clean.
And it is quieter than a sonicator and does not heat up
your samples more than a few degrees!
>
Risk Free Purchase
The Bullet Blender™
comes with a 30-day money back guarantee and a two year
warranty, with a three year warranty on the motor. The simple, reliable design enables the
Bullet Blenders™ to
sell for a fraction of the price of ultrasonic or
other agitation based instruments, yet provides an easier,
quicker technique.
> Established Protocols
Protocol for Tail Snip Homogenization in the
Bullet Blender™
The protocol described in this document is for the use of the Bullet Blender™ for the homogenization of tail snips. This protocol was developed using rat tail snips; note that the time and speed settings may differ due to the variation in size and toughness of tissue from species to species. This protocol was used for RNA extraction, and uses Qiagen's RNeasy Lysis Buffer (RLT), however you may choose a buffer that is most appropriate for your downstream application (nucleic acid isolation, protein extraction, etc.).
Materials Required: tail snips, Bullet Blender™, Qiagen RLT buffer, pipettor, microcentrifuge tubes, and 0.5mm stainless steel beads (part # SSB14B) or 0.5mm zirconium oxide beads (part # ZROB05).
Note: To preserve RNA integrity, this experiment was carried out in a cold room.
Instructions
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If necessary, cut tail snips into appropriately sized pieces for analysis (< 100mg) and place into a microcentrifuge tube.
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OPTIONAL: Wash tissue 3x with ~1mL PBS. Aspirate. NOTE: This step removes external contaminants.
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Add beads. If using zirconium oxide, use a mass of beads equal to 2x your mass of tissue. If using stainless steel beads, use 3x your mass of tissue.
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Add 2 volumes of RLT buffer for every mass of tissue (for example, add 100mL buffer for 50mg tissue).
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Close the microcentrifuge tubes.
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Place tubes into the Bullet Blender™.
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Set controls for SPEED 10 and TIME 5 minutes. Press Start. Run again for 5 minutes.
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After the run, remove tubes from the instrument.
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Visually inspect samples. If homogenization is unsatisfactory, run for another five minutes at the SPEED 10.
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Proceed with your downstream application.
This protocol was tested and found to generate high-integrity RNA (RIN = 8.5)
SAFETY NOTE!!!
When using a centrifuge to separate your homogenate from
the debris and beads, make sure your tubes are balanced.
Acknowledgement
Thanks to Dr. Madhu Prasad at the University of Michigan Medical Center for sharing this protocol.
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