4 Molecular: Sample Collection

Sample collection is an important first step for the design of any molecular experiment. The samples that we collect in our lab usually come from rhesus, humans, rats, or mice. The samples are usually tissue like brain, liver, skin, blood, or heart, but they can also be other biological material such as saliva or feces. Different tissue types will be used for different downstream applications and require different protocols for pre and post processing of the tissue samples.

Another thing to consider when receiving tissue samples is the time. How long has the tissue been exposed to the elements? How long in between the organism’s death (if dead) and tissue collection? How long in between the tissue collection and storage? Our tissue samples normally come from adjacent faculty members or labs. So most of this is usually well controlled. However, if the animal tissue has been collected from a deceased animal, then the time of death is still important to the sample integrity. The moment an organism dies is the moment the degradation process begins.