No need to immediately process samples Includes pre-loaded beads for effective sample homogenization by bead beating (tubes are fully compatible with commercially available bead beating systems) DNA preservation at room temperature over 2 years Ship fecal samples at room temperature safely Compatible with most DNA isolation methods Norgen’s Fecal DNA Collection & Preservation Mini Tubes are designed for the rapid preservation of DNA from fresh fecal specimens. These tubes contain Norgen’s Fecal DNA Preservative in a liquid format. Moreover, each collection tube is preloaded with beads for effective sample homogenization in any commercially available bead beater equipment (e.g. MP Biomedicals’ FastPrep®-24) . The user simply collects fecal samples into the tubes and mixes by shaking or vortexing until the feces is mixed well with preservative. The preservative prevents the growth of Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria and fungi, and also inactivates viruses allowing the resulting non-infectious samples to be handled and shipped safely. In addition, the preservative eliminates the need to immediately process or freeze samples and allows the samples to be shipped to centralized testing facilities at ambient temperatures. The components of the preservative allow the DNA in the samples to be preserved at room temperature for over 2 years. This kit is highly suited to collection and preservation of fecal material from mouse, hamster, chinchilla, rabbit and more for microbiome studies and other applications. DNA Isolation from Preservative Fecal samples collected and preserved in Norgen’s Fecal DNA Collection and Preservation Mini Tubes are compatible with most fecal DNA isolation methods. Samples stored in the tubes have been used successfully with all of Norgen Biotek’s stool-based DNA isolation kits (please refer to Related Products table) and reagents.