CN109374359A - animal breath collection device - Google Patents

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of animal expiration collection device, it not only can be by clean air delivery to animal, and it can effectively collect the gas of animal exhalation, described device includes the air-source being sequentially connected to by gastight conduit, animal housing and gas sampling portion, wherein air-source is for supplying pure air, animal housing is used to accommodate the animal that due-in collection is exhaled, and gas sampling portion includes the gas sampler for being sampled to collected expiration；The animal expiration collection device is characterized in that animal housing sequentially includes respiratory region, sealing and opening: respiratory region is suitable for accommodating the head for the animal that due-in collection is exhaled, and there is air supply opening sum aggregate port, the air supply opening is connected to receive supplied air with air-source, which is connected to so that the expiration of animal is discharged with gas sampling portion；Sealing is gas-tight seal for being formed at the trunk of animal；The animal for due-in collection to be exhaled that is open is put into animal housing.

Description

animal breath collection device

technical field

The present application relates to a gas collection device, in particular to an animal exhalation collection device.

Background technique

In addition to the components contained in the air such as nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide and rare gases, the exhaled breath of animals also contains many substances produced by their own life activities. These substances are exhaled as the animal breathes. Various studies have shown that the type and concentration of exhaled matter in animal exhalation can reflect the health status of organisms to a certain extent. Research on these substances is an important means to find new biomarkers, which can monitor the occurrence and development of diseases, and can play the purpose of early prevention of diseases.

However, unlike other biological samples such as plasma and urine, gas does not have the characteristics of small volume and easy long-term storage. At present, the best way to collect and preserve substances in gas is the adsorbent adsorption method. For large animal subjects, it is possible to use a device similar to that used to test human breath alcohol, and try to fix the device to the animal's mouth for testing. However, large animals are not very controlled, and the animal's own hyperactive characteristics will affect the experiment. However, due to the small size of small animals, it is not suitable to use the above-mentioned apparatus, and the exhalation collection device including the animal storage box is usually used for experiments on small animals.

However, prior art expiratory collection devices suffer from deficiencies. On the one hand, the animal storage box is bulky. If exhaled breath is collected shortly after storing the animal, the exhaled breath is a lower percentage of the collected gas. And if the proportion of waiting for exhalation in the animal storage box increases, it will delay the preparation time of the experiment and cause inconvenience. On the other hand, animals are stored in boxes and the odors emitted by their bodies and excrement can affect the collected exhaled breath.

The information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the application and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to solve the above technical problems, the purpose of the present application is to provide an animal exhalation collection device, which can not only deliver clean air to the animal, but also effectively collect the exhaled air of the animal.

In order to achieve the above object, the present application provides an animal exhalation collection device, comprising an air source, an animal containment hood and a gas sampling part sequentially communicated through an airtight pipe, wherein the air source is used for supplying pure air, the The animal accommodating hood is used for accommodating the animal whose breath is to be collected, and the gas sampling part includes a gas sampler for sampling the collected breath; the animal breath collecting device is characterized in that the animal accommodating hood is A breathing portion, a sealing portion, and an opening are included in this order: the breathing portion is adapted to receive the head of the animal whose exhaled breath is to be collected, and has an air supply port and an air collection port, the air supply port being in communication with an air source to receive the supplied air. Air, the air collecting port communicates with the gas sampling part to discharge the animal's exhalation; the sealing part is used to form an airtight seal at the animal's trunk; the opening is used to put the animal whose exhalation is to be collected into the animal in the containment hood.

In one embodiment, the air source is a compressed air bottle or an air generator.

In one embodiment, the gas sampling section includes a gas adsorption tube to selectively adsorb specific kinds of gas.

In one embodiment, the gas sampling section includes an impurity remover to selectively adsorb specific species of liquid or solid impurities.

In one embodiment, the animal exhalation collection device further comprises an air pump for improving gas circulation in the animal exhalation collection device.

In one embodiment, the animal exhalation collection device further includes an air control between the air source and the air supply port of the animal housing hood for monitoring air supplied to the animal housing hood.

In one embodiment, the air control includes an air flow controller for monitoring the flow of air supplied.

In one embodiment, the air control section includes an air pressure controller for monitoring the pressure of the supplied air.

In one embodiment, the air supply port is located in the upper part of the breathing part, and the air collecting port is located in the lower part of the breathing part.

In one embodiment, the breathing portion is integrally formed with the sealing portion.

In one embodiment, the breathing portion and the sealing portion are each formed as separate components.

In one embodiment, the animal exhalation collection device is made of a material that does not volatilize.

In one embodiment, the material used in the animal exhalation collection device is pre-heated to remove odor.

In one embodiment, the animal containment enclosure is made of a transparent material.

In one embodiment, the animal containment enclosure further includes a support portion between the sealing portion and the opening, the support portion for supporting an animal.

In one embodiment, the opening includes a securing mechanism for securing the animal to prevent detachment.

In one embodiment, the size of the sealing portion is smaller than the breathing portion, the support portion and the opening.

In one embodiment, the size of the sealing portion is smaller than the size of the natural fluffy state of the animal hair to be collected exhaled breath, and larger than the size of the state of the animal hair close to the torso.

In one embodiment, the gap between the sealing portion and the animal's torso is 1-4 mm when the animal's hair is close to the torso.

In one embodiment, the size of the seal is adjustable.

In one embodiment, the sealing portion is made of an elastic material.

In one embodiment, the seal is made of polytetrafluoroethylene.

The present application provides an animal exhalation collection device specially used for animal experiments, which can shorten the preparation time for exhalation collection while obtaining high-quality exhalation, and especially avoid the exhalation being affected by animal excrement.

In addition, the present application also provides a method of using the animal exhalation collection device.

Description of drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of an animal exhalation collection device provided by the present application.

It should be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various features that characterize the underlying principles of the application. The specific design features of the application disclosed herein (eg, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and profiles) will be determined in part by the specific intended application and use environment.

Detailed ways

Exemplary embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In order to collect the breath of animals for experiments, the present application provides an animal breath collection device 1 . An exemplary embodiment of the animal exhalation collection device 1 mainly includes an air source 10 , an air control part 20 , an animal containment cover 30 , and a gas sampling part 40 which are sequentially communicated through pipelines.

Apart from the gas passages described herein or as can be inferred from structural features, the various parts of the animal exhalation collection device 1 of the present application are airtight and preferably made of a material that does not volatilize (eg glass). Unless explicitly stated otherwise, the ventilation lines between the various parts of the animal exhalation collection device 1 of the present application and between the various components inside the various parts are preferably air-tight, and preferably made of materials that do not volatilize into (eg metal pipes). The connection interfaces used between the various pipelines and between the pipelines and other components are also preferably air-tight, and preferably made of materials that do not volatilize (eg, stainless steel double ferrule interfaces). The airtightness of the animal breath collection device 1 ensures that the collected breath is not affected.

Preferably, the glass, metal and other materials used in the device have undergone "aging" treatment, that is, baked at a relatively high temperature (eg, 400°C to 500°C) until no odor is emitted, so as not to affect the collected gas the quality of.

The air source 10 was used to supply pure air during the experiment. Preferably, the air source 10 continuously supplies air. The air source 10 can be, for example, a compressed air bottle or an air generator. Compressed air cylinders are used for direct supply of pure air, which has the advantage that the air supplied is of high quality and relatively stable without being affected by the environment. The air generator is used to catalyze the oxidation of organic matter in the air at high temperature to generate carbon dioxide and water, which are removed by the adsorbent inside, so that pure air can be obtained. The advantage of air generators is their lower cost.

Especially in the case of using an air generator, an air pump (not shown) can be provided upstream thereof for supplying ambient air to the air generator and improving the gas circulation in the animal exhalation collection device 1 .

In an alternative, the air pump is not located upstream of the air generator, but is located in the gas sampling section 40 , or between the animal containment hood 30 and the gas sampling section 40 . Disposing the air pump downstream of the animal accommodating hood 30 has the following advantages: on the basis of providing power for the animal exhalation collecting device 1, such an arrangement also helps to keep the inside of the animal accommodating hood 30 at room temperature and atmospheric pressure without causing The pressure is too high to avoid affecting the animal.

The air control unit 20 is used to monitor the air supplied to the animal housing hood 30 . The air control unit 20 includes an air flow controller 21 , an air pressure controller 22 , an air flow measurer 23 and a three-way valve 24 . The upstream of the airflow controller 21 is connected to the air source 10 , and the downstream is connected to the three-way valve 24 . The upstream of the air pressure controller 22 is connected with the three-way valve 24, and the downstream is connected with the external environment. The upstream of the airflow measuring device 23 is connected to the three-way valve 24 , and the downstream is connected to the animal housing hood 30 .

The airflow controller 21 is used to detect and control the flow of air supplied from the air source 10 to the remainder of the animal exhalation collection device 1 . A suitable air flow rate for expiratory collection is, for example, between 100 mL/min and 200 mL/min. The gas flow controller 21 is, for example, a needle valve gas flow controller.

The air pressure controller 22 is used to detect and control the pressure of the air supplied to the animal housing enclosure 30 . The air pressure controller 22 is, for example, a first oil bubbler, which controls the pressure in the system through hydraulic pressure, and discharges air when the pressure is too high to reduce the pressure exceeding the limit.

The airflow measurer 23 is used to measure the flow rate of air actually supplied to the animal housing hood 30 . The airflow measuring device 23 is, for example, a rotor gas flow regulator.

The animal containment hood 30 is used to contain the animal whose exhalation is to be collected. The animal containment cover 30 is a generally semi-open container, which is generally cylindrical, closed at one end and open at the other end. The animal accommodating cover 30 includes a breathing portion 31 at the closed end, a sealing portion 32 at the middle portion, and a support portion 33 and an opening 34 at the end open to the external environment.

The animal containment cover 30 is preferably made of a material that does not volatilize so as to prevent the collected exhaled air from being affected. The animal containment enclosure 30 is preferably made of a transparent material to facilitate observation of the condition of the animals in the animal containment enclosure 30 . In one example, the animal containment enclosure 30 is made of glass.

Optionally, the breathing part 31 , the sealing part 32 and the supporting part 33 may be integrally formed. Or alternatively, the breathing part 31 , the sealing part 32 and the supporting part 33 may be formed as separate components and then combined together.

The breathing part 31 is connected to the downstream of the airflow measuring device 23 through the air supply port 311 , and is connected to the upstream of the gas sampling part 40 through the air collection port 312 . Preferably, the breathing part 31 is detachably connected upstream of the gas sampling part 40 . Breathing portion 31 is shaped and sized to accommodate the head of the animal whose exhaled breath is to be collected, without reserving excess headroom volume (also referred to as dead volume). The air supply port 311 is spaced apart from the air collection port 312 . Preferably, the air supply port 311 is located at the upper part of the breathing part 31 , and the air collecting port 312 is located at the lower part of the breathing part 31 . When the breathing part 31 accommodates the head of the animal whose breath is to be collected, the air collecting port 312 is close to the mouth and nose of the animal, so that the ratio of the animal's breath to the collected gas is increased.

The space equivalent to the surplus volume of the present application is generally large in prior art expiratory collection devices (eg, in prior art expiratory collection devices for mice, the volume of the animal box is approximately 7-10 L). By reducing the surplus volume, the animal exhalation collection device 1 of the present application can increase the proportion of exhaled air to the collected gas in a relatively short period of time, so that high-quality exhalation can be obtained while shortening the exhalation collection preparation time. gas.

The seal 32 is shaped and dimensioned to fit snugly with the animal's torso to form a sufficiently good airtight seal with the animal's hair approximately in the middle of the animal's torso. That is, the size of the sealing portion 32 is smaller than the size of the natural fluffy state of the animal hair to be collected exhaled breath, and larger than the size of the state where the animal hair is close to the torso. When the hair is in close contact with the trunk, the gap between the animal trunk and the sealing portion 32 is, for example, 1-4 mm. The size of the sealing portion 32 may be smaller than, for example, the breathing portion 31 , the supporting portion 33 and the opening 34 .

In one example, the animal whose breath is to be collected is a mouse, and its trunk is roughly cylindrical, with a diameter of about 2.5 cm when the hair is naturally fluffy, and about 2.0 cm in diameter when the hair is close to the trunk. Therefore, the sealing portion 32 suitable for mice has a substantially cylindrical shape with an inner diameter of about 2.3 cm.

By forming an airtight seal in the middle of the animal's trunk, the animal exhalation collecting device 1 of the present application improves the quality of the collected animal exhalation, and in particular, prevents the exhaled air from being affected by animal waste.

Preferably, the sealing portion 32 is provided to be adjustable in size. By adjusting the size of the sealing portion 32, the animal exhalation collecting device 1 of the present application can be adapted to different animals. For example, the sealing portion 32 is made of an elastic material, and the size of the sealing portion 32 can be adjusted by the elasticity of the material. In one example, the sealing portion 32 is made of polytetrafluoroethylene.

The support portion 33 is used to support the trunk and tail of the animal whose exhalation is to be collected. Those skilled in the art can understand that the support part 33 is not in the air flow path of the animal exhalation collecting device 1 of the present application, so the animal's trunk and excrement located here will not affect the collected animal exhalation.

Through the opening 34 the animal to be collected exhaled breath can be placed in the animal containment hood 30 . Optionally, opening 34 may include a securing mechanism (not shown) to secure the animal after placement to prevent disengagement of the animal.

The gas sampling section 40 is used to sample the collected breath. The gas sampling unit 40 includes a gas sampler 43 . The gas sampler 43 can be any device or instrument known to those skilled in the art for sampling gas, so its structure will not be described in detail in this application.

Preferably, between the breathing section 31 and the gas sampler 43, the gas sampling section 40 includes a gas adsorption tube 41, an impurity remover 42, or any combination of the two in any order.

The gas adsorption tube 41 selectively adsorbs a specific type of gas before the gas is sampled, so as to avoid the influence of the type of gas on the sampling of other gases.

The gas adsorption tube 41 preferably comprises a Tenax adsorption tube. The advantage of this type of adsorption tube is that the selectively adsorbed gas species is suitable for the analysis of animal breath and can be reused.

The impurity remover 42 selectively removes liquid or solid impurities in the gas before the gas is sampled, thereby preventing the sampling of the gas from being affected and protecting the gas sampler 43 from being damaged by particulate matter.

In one example, the impurity remover 42 includes a drying tube to remove moisture from the gas. The drying tube preferably uses anhydrous magnesium sulfate.

In one example, the impurity remover 42 includes a second oil bubbler. Said second oil bubbler has the additional function of being able to display the ventilation rate downstream of the animal exhalation collection device 1 in addition to removing impurities.

The method of using the animal exhalation collection device 1 is described below:

The connection between the breathing part 31 and the gas sampling part 40 is disassembled and released. The air source 10 is operated to start supplying air. The air control section 20 is adjusted to control the air supplied to the animal housing hood 30 . The experimental animal is put into the animal housing cover 30 through the opening 34 , and the condition of the animal in the animal housing cover 30 is observed and confirmed, especially the air tightness of the sealing part 32 . When it is judged that it is suitable to collect exhaled breath, the gas sampling part 40 is connected to the breathing part 31 to start the collection.

By improving the structural arrangement of the animal accommodating cover 30, the animal exhalation collecting device 1 of the present application can obtain high-quality exhalation while shortening the exhalation collection preparation time, and especially avoid the exhalation being affected by animal excrement.

The foregoing descriptions of specific exemplary embodiments of the present application have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. The foregoing description is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the application to the precise form disclosed, obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain certain principles of the application and their practical applications, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to make and utilize the various exemplary embodiments of the application, as well as various alternatives and modifications thereof form. The scope of the application is intended to be defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims (10)

1. An animal exhalation collection device (1), comprising an air source (10), an animal accommodating cover (30) and a gas sampling part (40) sequentially communicated through an airtight pipe, wherein, The air source (10) is used to supply pure air, The animal accommodating cover (30) is used for accommodating the animal whose breath is to be collected, The gas sampling part (40) includes a gas sampler (43) for sampling the collected exhalation; The animal exhalation collection device (1) is characterized in that the animal containment cover (30) sequentially includes a breathing part (31), a sealing part (32) and an opening (34): The breathing part (31) is suitable for accommodating the head of the animal whose exhalation is to be collected, and has an air supply port (311) and an air collection port (312), the air supply port (311) being communicated with the air source (10) to receiving the supplied air, the air collecting port (312) communicates with the gas sampling part (40) to discharge the animal's exhalation; the sealing portion (32) is used to form an airtight seal at the trunk of the animal; The opening (34) is used to place the animal whose breath is to be collected into the animal housing hood (30). 2. The animal exhalation collection device (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the animal exhalation collection device (1) further comprises an air pump, and the air source (10) is connected to the animal containment cover (30) further comprises an air control part (20) between the air supply ports (311); The air pump is used to improve the gas circulation in the animal exhalation collection device (1), the air control section (20) for monitoring the air supplied to the animal containment enclosure (30); and The gas sampling section (40) includes means for selectively removing certain kinds of substances before sampling. 3. The animal exhalation collecting device (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that, the breathing part (31) and the sealing part (32) are formed into one piece; or, The breathing part (31) and the sealing part (32) are respectively formed as separate components. 4. The animal exhalation collection device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the animal containment cover (30) further comprises a support between the sealing portion (32) and the opening (34) part (33), the support part (33) is used to support the animal. 5. The animal expiratory collection device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the opening (34) comprises a securing mechanism for securing the animal to prevent detachment. 6. The animal exhalation collecting device (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the size of the sealing part (32) is smaller than the breathing part (31) and the opening (34). 7. The animal exhalation collection device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the size of the sealing portion (32) is smaller than the size of the animal hair to be collected in a natural fluffy state, but larger than the size of the The size of the animal's hair when it is close to the torso. 8. The animal exhalation collection device (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that, when the animal's hair is close to the torso, the gap between the sealing portion (32) and the animal's torso is 1- 4mm. 9. The animal exhalation collection device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the size of the sealing portion (32) can be adjusted. 10. The animal exhalation collection device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the sealing portion (32) is made of elastic material.