BD Vacutainer® PPT™ Plasma Preparation Tube

Summary & Explanations

Isolation of plasma from whole blood is a first step for many in-vitro molecular diagnostic assays. Although, one definition of plasma is "acellular", a current accepted technique for plasma separation is to collect whole blood into an EDTA or ACD blood collection tube, such as the BD Vacutainer® tube containing those anticoagulants. This anticoagulated blood, collected by routine phlebotomy, requires centrifugation to separate the plasma from the formed elements. Immediately after centrifugation, the tube is opened and the plasma is carefully pipetted into a separate container. The BD Vacutainer® Brand PPT™ - Plasma Preparation Tube combines a spray-dried anticoagulant and a polyester material which separates most of the erythrocytes and granulocytes, and some of the lymphocytes and monocytes away from the supernatant. Plasma prepared in a BD PPT™tube may contain a higher concentration of platelets than that found in whole blood. The result is a convenient, safe, single tube system for the collection of whole blood and the separation of plasma. Samples can be collected, processed and transported in situ thereby reducing the possibility of exposure to bloodborne pathogens at the collection and sample processing sites.