Patent ID: 6514769
Filing Date: 2003-02-04
Classification: B01L,G01N,Y10S

Abstract:
A device for use in determining whether the integrity of a fluid analyte sample has been compromised and for contemporaneously assaying the sample for the presence or absence of multiple analytes, the device comprising:(A) a base having adjacent slots therein of sufficient length for insertion of an analyte test strip therein, wherein each slot is defined by (a) a floor, (b) raised walls depending upwardly from the floor to separate each adjacent slot from the next, and (c) at least one open end; (B) a multiplicity of analyte test strips having an upstream and a downstream end, wherein each analyte test strip occupies a separate slot of the base so the upstream end of each analyte test strip protrudes out of the open end of each slot for application of the fluid analyte sample; (C) a sample integrity monitoring system, the system comprising: (a) a carrier membrane which lies parallel with and underlies each analyte test strip; (b) a sample integrity determinant pad in fluid communication with the carrier membrane; and, (c) determinants incorporated into the integrity determinant pad, which determinants provide a detectable signal for a parameter indicative of the condition of the fluid; wherein neither the carrier membrane nor the integrity determinant pad are in appreciable fluid communication with any of the analyte test strips.