Biomatrica's RNAstable(TM) Stabilizes RNA at Room Temperature

SAN DIEGO, Jan. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Biomatrica, the biostability company
that offers innovative technologies for stabilizing biological samples at room
temperature, has introduced RNAstable(TM) for preserving RNA at room
temperature, eliminating the need for cold storage and shipping.
Interest in RNA has skyrocketed over the past years due to its role as a
gene silencer and in gene expression studies. However, RNA samples are
difficult to work with given their highly labile nature and tendency to
degrade even in cold storage. Exposure to slightly elevated temperatures for
even short time periods can compromise RNA integrity and detrimentally affect
downstream assays.
Biomatrica's RNAstable utilizes technology that forms a thermo-stable
barrier, securely "shrink-wrapping" RNA samples to protect them from
degradation. To store their RNA, researchers simply need to pipette their
samples directly into a tube or well of RNAstable and let dry. Sample
recovery requires just adding water; there is no further purification
involved.
RNAstable preserves RNA at room temperature for up to five months and has
demonstrated an equivalent of three and a half years stability under
accelerated aging conditions. In side-by-side comparisons, RNAstable is better
at preventing degradation than freezer storage. Furthermore, RNA samples
recovered following stabilization in RNAstable can be used directly in
applications such as qRT-PCR, bioanalyzer and microarray analysis, end-point
PCR, gel analysis, cDNA synthesis and reverse transcription without inhibition
or interference.
"RNA is hard to work with because it is unstable and degrades even when
properly stored," said Fernando Monroy, Associate Professor at Northern
Arizona University. "You are always anxious until you see the results of your
experiments. RNAstable makes working with RNA much easier, as it preserves
its integrity during storage, and it has allowed my experiments to be
consistently reproduced."
Scientists can now store their RNA samples with minimal effort on the
bench top in a 1.5 ml microcentrifuge tube or 96-well plate containing
RNAstable, greatly reducing reliance on costly freezer units. Biomatrica
estimates that storing samples with RNAstable costs 15 times less than keeping
them in freezers. Shipping samples at ambient temperature also drastically
reduces transportation costs by as much as 75 percent since dry ice is not
needed. Additionally, the integrity of RNA stabilized in RNAstable is
protected against fluctuating and inconsistent temperatures during shipping.
About Biomatrica(R), Inc.
Biomatrica (http://www.biomatrica.com) is a San Diego-based biostability
company that provides innovative technologies for stabilizing, storing and
shipping biological samples at room temperature. The novel platform
technology, based on the principles of anhydrobiosis (life without water),
which allows multicellular organisms to survive extreme environments, is
designed for use in preserving complex biological samples and assays.
Biomatrica's current products stabilize nucleic acids with no sample
degradation, thus labs can reduce their reliance on freezers and drastically
reduce shipping costs. In addition to RNAstable, Biomatrica also offers
products that stabilize DNA, including DNA SampleMatrix(R), and CrudE
SampleMatrix(R), a bacterial DNA stabilization and isolation product.
Biomatrica products are used in laboratories performing life science
research, from pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to academic research
and forensics laboratories. Custom services to stabilize additional sample
types are available. The company also offers SampleWare(R) Version
3.0 Software, which is an easy-to-use, customizable laboratory sample
management database that provides scientists with the means to store and
organize their biological samples, and directly supports samples stabilized
with Biomatrica technology.
SOURCE Biomatrica, Inc.

Stephanie M. Boos of Biomatrica, +1-858-550-0308, ext. 23,
sboos@biomatrica.com; or Ken Li of Chempetitive Group, +1-312-997-2436, ext.
111, kli@chempetitive.com, for Biomatrica