Is serum centrifugation required to be at low temperature of 4 degrees?
Whether serum centrifugation must be performed at 4°C depends on the sample processing stage, downstream applications, and requirements for metabolic/protein stability. It is not always necessary to perform at low temperatures.
Key Judgment:
1. Serum separation after blood coagulation (routine biochemical testing)
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Generally, room temperature centrifugation is sufficient (around 20–25°C), with a short centrifugation time (approximately 10 minutes, 1000–3000 g).
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Serum should be separated from the sample as soon as possible to prevent the ongoing metabolism of cells from affecting the components.
2. For proteomics, metabolomics, or enzyme activity-sensitive analyses
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It is recommended to centrifuge at 4°C to reduce protein degradation and metabolic activity.
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Especially for metabolomics, low temperatures can significantly inhibit changes in metabolites.
3. Special circumstances
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If anticoagulant tubes are used (such as for plasma), or if further cell component analysis is required, low temperatures are also needed to prevent cell lysis.
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If processing is delayed for a long time or multiple freeze-thaw cycles are required, it is more essential to operate at low temperatures throughout.
Summary
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Room temperature can be used for routine clinical testing;
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For metabolomics, proteomics, and temperature-sensitive research, centrifugation must be done entirely at 4°C and serum should be separated as quickly as possible.
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