Urine microsampling,
liquid and dried.
At-home urine collection across the full ladder (liquid for volume, dried spots for economy, and VAMS for volumetric accuracy) for hormone metabolites, steroid profiles, drug and renal markers, on one clinical platform. For the volumetric dried choice, we use VAMS by Neoteryx Mitra.
What is urine
microsampling?
Urine microsampling is the remote, patient-collected collection of a first-morning, timed or dried urine sample at home, returned to an accredited laboratory under documented chain of custody. It applies the microsampling model (patient-collected, small-format, logistics-tracked) to urine, including ambient-stable dried formats that ship without a cold chain and volumetric formats that fix the collected volume for quantitation.
Three ways to collect urine.
Conventional urine depends on voided volume, cold-chain shipping and preservatives. Dried formats remove most of that burden by absorbing a small aliquot that dries and ships ambient. Of the dried options, VAMS is the one that also fixes the volume.
| Liquid urine | Dried urine spot | VAMS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Voided or timed collection | Drops dried on a card | Fixed volume on a tip |
| Volume control | Full sample | Uncontrolled spot | Fixed at the tip, viscosity-independent |
| Cold chain | Refrigerate or preserve | Ambient | Ambient |
| Ambient stability | Limited, degrades in transit | Good | Best, outperforms DUS on long storage |
| Best-established use | First-void molecular (HPV, STI); high-volume & biobank | Economical dried panels | Volumetric accuracy & stability |
Drying urine at the point of collection halts the bacterial and thermal degradation that affects wet urine in transit, and for labile analytes such as peptide hormones, dried samples at room temperature can retain more than liquid urine frozen for shipping. In a direct side-by-side on the same urine, VAMS held long-term room-temperature stability better than a dried urine spot, which is why we make VAMS the volumetric dried choice.
VAMS, by Neoteryx.
Urine is one of the most-applied matrices for volumetric absorptive microsampling. The Neoteryx Mitra tip wicks a fixed volume regardless of the sample’s viscosity, dries, and ships ambient, giving a quantitatively consistent dried urine sample without a cold chain. Humans Nexus curates and supplies the device on the platform and assembles the regulated kit around it; Neoteryx is the manufacturer.
Urine VAMS is positioned for hormone and steroid panels, drug/adherence and metabolite work (not for immunosuppressant therapeutic drug monitoring, which is a blood assay). Suitability is established per analyte through method validation.
First-void, by Colli-Pee.
Not all liquid urine is equal. For urogenital molecular targets (HPV, sexually transmitted infections and related biomarkers) the first-void (first-catch) fraction concentrates the cells and analytes that a random midstream sample dilutes. Colli-Pee captures a standardised, defined volume of that first-void fraction, which is what makes liquid urine a reproducible molecular matrix and supports validated self-sampling. DNA Genotek is the manufacturer.
A validated panel.
An honest trade-off.
Dried is not universally better (it is a logistics choice). Dried VAMS and DUS win on transport, room-temperature storage, biohazard handling and volumetric consistency; they suit hormone, steroid, drug and metabolite work collected from home. Liquid urine keeps an edge where you need large volumes, ultra-low-abundance analytes, or an established frozen-biobank workflow, many clinical-chemistry parameters remain valid for years frozen without preservative. We offer the whole ladder and match the format to the analyte, not the other way round.
From collection to lab.
A first-morning or timed sample into a stabilised container, a few drops onto a dried-urine card, or a fixed volume onto a VAMS tip, matched to the panel.
Sealed, ID-matched and returned by tracked courier (dried formats at ambient temperature, liquid formats with controlled-temperature transport where required).
Accessioned under full custody and reported into your system.
The research library.
No papers match these filters.
External links open an open-access full text where one exists, otherwise the publisher or PubMed record. These citations describe the published evidence for the collection formats and devices (not claims about specific Humans Nexus assays, which are validated per analyte and per laboratory).
Sealed. Tracked.
Ambient-stable.
Preservative-stabilised liquid collection, dried-urine cards and VAMS tips are matched to each panel’s validated requirements, sealed and tracked end to end. Dried and volumetric formats ship ambient; liquid uses controlled-temperature transport where the panel requires it. Method validation runs into ISO 15189-accredited laboratories before patient-facing reporting.
Whoever runs the test.
Infrastructure for healthcare and life sciences. Our partners reach the patient, and we never sell directly.
Good to know.
Why dried or volumetric urine instead of liquid?
Dried formats ship at ambient temperature without refrigeration and halt the degradation that affects wet urine in transit. VAMS adds a fixed, viscosity-independent volume for quantitation. Liquid still suits high-volume, ultra-low-abundance or established frozen-biobank work (it is a trade-off matched to the analyte).
Why VAMS rather than a dried urine spot?
Both dry and ship ambient, but VAMS fixes the collected volume at the tip and, in a direct comparison on the same urine, held long-term room-temperature stability better than a dried urine spot, so it is our volumetric dried choice where accuracy and storage matter.
What can urine microsampling measure?
Hormone and steroid metabolites, reproductive markers, drug and adherence testing, multi-class doping panels, and renal/metabolic markers such as albumin-to-creatinine ratio. Not immunosuppressant TDM, which is a blood assay.
Does it need a cold chain?
Dried and VAMS formats don’t; liquid collections use preservatives and controlled-temperature transport where the panel requires it.
Put urine on the platform.
Talk to us about adding liquid, dried and volumetric urine collection to your programme.