¿Is there anyone that works with FTA cards regularly? ¿Any experience with this system?. I am very interested in improving DNA recovery from cards, and I wonder whether using the conventional phenol-chloroform system instead of silica gel columns (like those from Qiagen) works better or not. I'm thinking in milk fixed in the paper.

We use FTA cards for all our international samples. They work very well and seem to be about equal in sensitivity to fixing tissues in phenol/chloroform prior to extraction. They are not as sensitive as using fresh tissue samples but of course we can not import fresh tissue samples. The FTA cards are also easy to ship and store.

Thanks Daral,

¿When you import samples fixed in FTA cards do you consider them as non hazardous? I mean, ¿Do you ask for additional import permits to allow people sending samples to you?

¿What extraction procedure do you usually use for DNA extraction?

We recently published a technical note about the use of the cards for rapid diagnosis of swine Influenza regardless the subtype. If anyone is interested I can attach it to a post.
* Last updated by: Maldonado on 1/7/2010 @ 10:58 AM *

I consider them to be non-hazardous. I am required to have an import permit for any samples sent from outside the US and that includes samples on FTA cards. I don't know what you mean about additional import permits. I have just the one permit. Any infectious agents will be inactivated by the chemicals on the cards so they are non-infectious and non-hazardous.

We don't do DNA extractions for PCR very often because I work with an RNA virus but when I do, we use the Q-Bio gene FastDNA kit (Cat# 6540-400). It uses spin column technology and seems to work very well.

I though that being these samples non-hazardous that was enough to submit them by regular mail with no import permit.

I was having a look to the QBiogene web site. ¿Do you use the FastPrep machine with the FastDNA kit??. ¿Have you any data comparing this system with other available in the market or against the conventional ones (heating or Fenol-Clor/OH-based)??.

I found a distributor of this kit in Spain and perhaps we can try!!

Thanks Daral, interesting information

I know you don't need an import permit for some countries but the US requires one even for FTA card samples.

We do not use the FastPrep machine. We have a similar machine on campus but it is in another building so i don't use it. Let me know if you try it.

We are working on a section of the forum for pathology photos. I will let you know when it is ready.