How Breath is Collected:
The proprietary VosCryo™ breath collection device works by condensing exhaled breath using a frozen sleeve. Warm breath is condensed at the interface between the internal barrel and frozen cooling sleeve, ready to be collected or dispensed for testing. When compared to other breath collection devices, the VosCryo™ breath collector is not only faster but is much easier to use. The VosCryo™ system collects 50 µL of EBC in 20 secs.
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Prior to use, the whole device is stored in the freezer until the sleeve is frozen. It can be stored in an ice chest or cooler for up to 8 hours before use.
•Breath inlet tube
•Directs breath to base of a syringe, reverses flow along chilled barrel surface
•Small syringe barrel
•Chilled below freezing, droplets, aerosols and vapor condense on contact
•Frozen cooling sleeve
•Flexible tubing holds layer of frozen fluid in thermal contact with syringe barrel
•Dispenser tip
•Collected volume allows condensed breath to be transferred efficiently with plunger
•Cap/vial
•Keeps syringe sealed until time to transfer breath liquid
•Ensures reverse flow of air
•Plunger
•Gathers condensed breath to deposit wherever needed
The composition of Exhaled Breath Condensate (EBC):
Big droplets, small droplets, and gaseous breath.
EBC is mostly composed of water, but does include other components such as proteins, lipids and other molecules. At VosBio™, EBC has been used to sample viral particles that have been shed and exhaled by a person that may be infectious with SARS-CoV-2 or other respiratory diseases.
Droplet size and water vapor:
Big droplets, small droplets, and gaseous breath.
Exhaled breath includes gaseous water vapor and tiny droplets ranging from less than 1 μM to over 1,000 μM. These droplets can be differentiated based on size, with those below 5 μM considered aerosols, and those above 5 μM considered droplets. The World Health Organization now refers to these collectively as respiratory particles. The majority of the water in breath is gaseous when it is exhaled, although it rapidly condenses on contact with cold surfaces such as the inside of the VosCryo™ collection chamber. Large and small respiratory particles also coalesce on the cold surface and combine with the condensed water vapor.
Particles of different sizes originate in different areas of the respiratory tract through different mechanisms, and therefore may have different compositions or analytes of interest. The VosCryo™ breath collector captures all droplets together, allowing any components of the sample to be analyzed.
Addressing saliva contamination:
The VosCryo™ breath collector does not accumulate excess saliva. Users breathe through the tube at a comfortable angle, approximately horizontal. This prevents saliva from dripping into the sample due to gravity. Sample times are very short, typically under a minute. This prevents saliva from accumulating over time, while breath condensate is rapidly collected. Finally, the VosCryo™ system's patented reverse-flow collection allows breath to condense efficiently over a wide surface area, while any saliva is retained in the mouthpiece.
Compatible with any detection method:
Mass spec. IR, Eliza, PCR, LAMP
Because EBC is composed of mostly water, this makes for a much cleaner clinical specimen when compared to nasal swabs, nasopharyngeal swabs, bronchoalveolar lavage, and oropharyngeal swabs. This allows for sample collection to be used directly without the need of prepping the sample for analysis. EBC is suitable for molecular detection such as PCR and LAMP, as well as mass spectrometry, ELISA, and any other detector monitoring for any biomarker in the sample.