Patent ID: 8574923

Claim:
A method for purifying an analyte from a liquid sample, comprising: placing said liquid sample in a container; withdrawing at least a portion of said liquid sample into a sample preparation device comprising: a housing defining a passage way between a first opening and a second opening; and a filter occupying a section of said passage way, said filter comprising a material that specifically binds to said analyte, wherein said portion of liquid sample is drawn into said housing via the first opening and passing through said filter, wherein said filter comprises a glass frit, and wherein said analyte is a nucleic acid that binds to said glass frit while passing through said filter; expelling said portion of liquid sample from said sample preparation device via the first opening, wherein said portion of liquid sample passes through said filter a second time while exiting said sample preparation device; and eluting said analyte from said filter by withdrawing an eluting buffer into said sample preparation device via the first opening and expelling said eluting buffer from said sample preparation device via the first opening, wherein said eluting buffer passes through said filter while entering and exiting said sample preparation device.