Patent ID: 7560255

Claim:
A process for detecting the presence of a target nucleic acid in a sample, the process comprising the automated steps of: (a) contacting a sample containing a target nucleic acid with a solid support comprising a magnetically-responsive particle; (b) immobilizing the target nucleic acid on the solid support; (c) at a first station of an analyzer, subjecting the solid support to a magnetic field and separating the immobilized target nucleic acid from a non-immobilized component of the sample; (d) moving a solution comprising the separated target nucleic acid to a second station of the analyzer; (e) in an incubator of the second station, subjecting the separated target nucleic acid to an amplification procedure and forming an amplification product; and (f) detecting the amplification product formed in step (e) as an indication of the presence of the target nucleic acid in the sample.