Nucleic Acid Preservation Reagents

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What Is a Nucleic Acid Collection and Preservation Reagent?

Nucleic acids collected from living organisms will be degraded by nucleases (DNase and RNase) if they are left untreated. The degradation of nucleic acids affects the results of genetic analysis, including gene expression analysis and microbiome metagenomic analysis.

Nucleic acid collection and preservation reagents contain surfactants and chelating agents in solutions to suppress the action of nucleases, which enables the preservation of nucleic acids in stable condition for a long time, even at a room temperature.
Nucleic acid collection and preservation reagents are useful in the following cases:

• A large number of samples are collected from wide range of areas for performing large-scale genetic analysis.
• The interval between sample collection and genetic analysis is long.
• Nucleic acids must be stored for a long time, for example, in a biobank.
• Maintenance of the microbiome composition in the state it was in immediately after the sample collection is desired.

As for human sample collection, an important factor when the samples are collected by subjects themselves is that the collection method is painless, noninvasive, and simple. Blood collection is invasive and it is difficult to obtain consent from subjects. In addition, special collection techniques are required.

Methods of collecting samples using a mouthwash or from oral mucosa using cotton swabs are noninvasive and easy, but they have a disadvantage of low nucleic acid yields. At present, the method mainly used is collecting saliva as drool.