2021 Volume 60 Issue 2 Pages 102-109
Objective : We investigated the nucleic acid quality in sodium alginate cell blocks (CBs) prepared from liquid-based cytology (LBC) specimens, and evaluated the impact of long-term storage of the LBC-CBs on the nucleic acid quality.
Study Design : We analyzed the nucleic acid quality in LBC-CBs prepared from effusion fluid in 19 patients with lung or ovarian cancer between January and March 2020. The impact of long-term storage of the LBC-CBs on the nucleic acid quality was also analyzed.
Results : The cytological findings of the LBC-CBs were satisfactory and the CB area was related to the DNA quantity (r=0.808). In regards to the impact of long-term storage, the DNA integrity number (DIN) could be calculated in 16 of the 19 cases (84.2%) and the DNA quality was relatively good. The length of time that the samples had been stored (days) prior to preparation of the LBC-CBs had no significant effect on the DIN (r=−0.176), whereas long-term sample storage (years) was associated with some deterioration of the DNA quality (p<0.001).
Conclusion : The nucleic acid quality in LBC-CBs was excellent, and if an adequate amount of DNA is collected, it could be possible to use samples prepared by this method for a variety of genetic tests.
