The sample that arrives
is the sample they gave.
Stabilisation, controlled-temperature transport and documented chain of custody (the infrastructure that makes a home-collected sample clinical-grade, not mail-in).
The best cold chain is
the one you don't need.
Every refrigerated shipment is a cost and a point of failure. So the first move is always to remove the cold chain entirely, dried and buffered formats that are stable at ambient temperature by design. Where the analyte allows, the sample travels as a dried tip, a spot, or a stabilised matrix: no ice, no excursion risk. Controlled-temperature transport is the managed exception, never the default.
Matched to the matrix.
Ambient-stable
Dried and buffered formats (VAMS, dried blood spot, dried urine, and stool collected at controlled volume in a DNA-stabilising buffer) are stable at room temperature and ship by standard tracked return.
No cold chainStabilised liquid
Where a liquid sample is required, preservatives, buffers and internal standards protect the analyte in transit, chemical stabilisation doing the work refrigeration would.
Logged where requiredControlled-temperature
For liquid capillary blood and any cold-chain-dependent analyte, we orchestrate controlled-temperature packaging, temperature-logged from collection to accessioning, moved on medical courier networks.
Temperature-loggedThe shipper, and the courier.
Documented, every step.
From collection to accessioning, the sample carries its own identity and its own record, the audit trail that lets a result be trusted for a medical decision.
Clinical-grade, not mail-in.
Consumer mail-in
- Sample dropped in the post
- No documented identity chain
- No temperature record
- Integrity assumed, not proven
Humans Nexus
- Stabilisation matched to the matrix
- ID-matched, tamper-evident sealing
- Controlled-temperature transport where required
- A temperature and custody record that travels with the sample
Which tier, which sample.
| Sample / format | Stability tier | Transport |
|---|---|---|
| Dried blood spot | Ambient-stable | No cold chain |
| VAMS | Ambient-stable | No cold chain |
| Saliva | Stabilised | No cold chain |
| Urine, dried | Ambient-stable | No cold chain |
| Urine, liquid | Stabilised | Temperature-logged |
| Stool | Ambient-stable | No cold chain |
| Liquid capillary (YourBio) | Controlled-temperature | Temperature-logged |
Stabilisation and transport are matched per analyte; controlled-temperature transport is applied only where the panel requires it.
Sealed. Tracked.
Temperature-logged.
Whoever signs off the result.
Good to know.
Does a home-collected sample need refrigeration?
Usually not. Dried and buffered formats (VAMS, dried blood spot, dried urine and stabilised stool) are stable at ambient temperature by design. For the liquid samples that do, controlled-temperature transport is temperature-logged from collection to accessioning.
What is chain of custody?
An ID-matched, tamper-evident, timestamped record of a sample from the moment of collection to laboratory accessioning, the documented audit trail that makes a result defensible for a medical decision.
How is this different from a consumer mail-in test?
A mail-in test drops a sample in the post. Clinical-grade means stabilisation matched to the matrix, ID-matched tamper-evident sealing, documented custody, controlled-temperature transport where the panel requires it, and a temperature record that travels with the sample.
Who moves the samples?
Samples move on medical courier networks. The stabilisation, temperature solution and custody chain are ours, we orchestrate and document the journey end to end.
Protect the sample, end to end.
Talk to us about stabilisation, custody and controlled-temperature transport for your programme.