# Improving Capacity to Increase Throughput and Minimize Cross-Contamination During Sample Processing Utilizing a Bead Mill Homogenizer

> **NIH FDA U18** · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · 2020 · $15,076

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
This project involves the purchase of an Omni Bead Ruptor bead mill homogenizer and associated
supplies to increase throughput and minimize cross-contamination during sample processing. During a
known or suspected disease outbreak that requires rapid analysis of large numbers of specimens,
sample preparation is frequently a rate-limiting step in diagnostic testing. Cross-contamination of feed
and other animal products can occur during manufacturing, handling, transport, storage, or at the point
of consumption and may result in unintentional and potentially harmful exposures to excessive levels of
vitamins, minerals, human or veterinary medications, pesticides, or other potentially harmful
substances. Occasionally, accidental cross-contamination of diagnostic specimens may occur during
either sample collection or in the course of preparation and processing for laboratory analysis. Our
laboratory currently serves as a Vet-LIRN network laboratory to diagnose, characterize and report
emerging and endemic veterinary diseases, including animal poisonings and food or feed contamination
events. This purchase will enable us to process 3 to 12 samples simultaneously, compared to our current
homogenization device that can only process one sample at a time. This high-throughput sample
processing capacity will greatly reduce sample preparation time and the personnel labor involved.
Finally, this bead mill homogenizer utilizes an individual sample tubes for each sample, avoiding the
potential cross-contamination that may occur when the same homogenization blade is used for each
sample as with our current device.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10212570
- **Project number:** 1U18FD007245-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Lisa Murphy
- **Activity code:** U18 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** FDA
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $15,076
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-09-20 → 2021-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10212570

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10212570, Improving Capacity to Increase Throughput and Minimize Cross-Contamination During Sample Processing Utilizing a Bead Mill Homogenizer (1U18FD007245-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10212570. Licensed CC0.

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