Flow Cytometry Applications
Flow cytometry is an extremely effective method of recognizing and assessing characteristics of cells or particles. There are a large number of research applications for flow cytometry, which we highlight below and discuss in more detail.
Key Flow Applications
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Immunophenotyping
Immunophenotyping is the characterization of cells based on the expression of genes and combinations of genes. Flow cytometry can be used to quantify the number and proportion of specific cell types in a heterogeneous mixture, by examining the expression of proteins often expressed on the surface of cells. This information can then be used to diagnose and classify diseases, monitor the effectiveness of treatment, and study the immune system.
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Cell Sorting
Flow cytometry may be used to separate and sort cells based on various detectable characteristics, which has many uses in research. Some examples of applications of cell sorting include: purifying transfected cells based on the expression of a fluorescent reporter gene and separating single cells prior to single cell RNAseq.
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Cell Proliferation Assays
Cell proliferation assays measure the often rapid expansion of a cell population. Important in homeostasis, it is also used to measure the activation of T cells that results in rapid clonal expansion.
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Cell Cycle Analysis
Cell cycle analysis is the process of measuring the DNA content of cells in order to determine stages of the cell cycle. It is used in a variety of applications, such as the study of cancer, the development of new drugs, and the monitoring of treatment response.
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Apoptosis
Apoptosis or programmed cell death is a complex but fundamental cellular process important in the development, growth, and homeostasis of multicellular organisms. It is essential for removing old, damaged, or infected cells.
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Transfection Efficiency
Transfection efficiency is the percentage of cells that take up and express a foreign gene. It is an important parameter in molecular biology, as it determines the success of gene transfer experiments.
Specialist Flow Applications
Automated High-Throughput Screening
Therapeutics development, antibody screening, and biomarker discovery demand maximal productivity to reduce time-to-results, which can greatly benefit from high-throughput, high parametric flow analysis interfaced with robotic automation.
Exosome Detection
Learn the principles of exosome detection using flow cytometry, and access a range of useful resources on small particle analysis, including a handy protocol.
CAR T-Cell Development
CAR T-cell therapy is a groundbreaking therapy that uses modified cells from the body's immune system to attack disease-causing cells. The current focus for this therapy centers around killing cancer cells.
Cancer Research with Flow Cytometry
Flow cytometry is a key technology in the field of cancer research, but presents challenges for flow cytometry instrumentation, especially when studying solid tumors or dealing with a high volume of samples.
Stem Cell Analysis
The study of stem cells informs many aspects of our understanding of biology. In this highly dynamic field, learn how to identify human Hematopoietic and Mesenchymal stem cells using flow cytometry and why the ZE5 Cell Analyzer is uniquely suited to this application.
Innovative Flow Cytometry Instrument
To successfully carry out a large proportion of the applications mentioned above, you will need a high performance flow cytometer such as the ZE5 Cell Analyzer.
ZE5 Cell Analyzer
Meet the ZE5 Cell Analyzer from Bio-Rad
Designed by users for users this video shows how customer feedback directly resulted in the creation of an instrument that addresses gaps in other flow cytometry instruments.
Critical for helping scientists accelerate scientific and drug discoveries in both academia and industry, the ZE5 Cell Analyzer is a high performance, automation-ready flow cytometer with the ideal combination of high-throughput screening and high parameter cell analysis capabilities.
- Integrated sample loader supporting tube racks and multiple plate formats without hardware exchange
- Up to 5 lasers, 27 colors that enable panel design flexibility
- Acquisition at up to 100,000 events per second without data abort
- Process 384-well plates in less than 50 min and 96-well plates in less than 15 min in high-throughput mode
- Sensitive small particle detector for exosome analysis
- Device-agnostic API for integration with any laboratory robotic system
- Future proofing with a variety of optical and fluidic upgrade options
Have questions?
Essential Associated Software & Tools
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FCS Express
Streamline your acquisition-to-publication workflow with the FCS Express Software from De Novo that comes with new ZE5 Cell Analyzer purchases.
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ZE5 Cell Analyzer Configurations for FRET & Fluorescent Protein Assays
Learn new, high-throughput capabilities of the ZE5 Cell Analyzer that help overcome limitations of fluorescence microscopy during the analysis of protein interaction and protein assembly in living cells.
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Flow Cytometry Antibodies
Select from thousands of primary and secondary antibodies as well as related reagents for flow cytometry, immunology, cancer research, veterinary, and other applications.
ZE5 Cell Analyzer Application Examples
This high performance flow cytometer is designed to meet a broad range of application needs. Check out these examples to learn how the ZE5 Cell Analyzer has helped scientists obtain more high quality results in less time from a variety of research areas.
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Cell-Mediated Immunity to SARS-CoV-2
Potent SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell immunity is documented in COVID-19 convalescent patients, along with prevalent cross-reactivity between circulating “common cold” coronaviruses and the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2.
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Monitoring T Cell Exhaustion After IMT
(PDF 0.77 MB)
Read how the multi-parametric capability of the ZE5 Cell Analyzer enables monitoring of T-cell exhaustion after nivolumab treatment. -
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Extracellular Vesicle Labeling and Uptake Analysis
Check out how the ZE5 Cell Analyzer was used to characterize parasite-derived extracellular vesicles that are smaller than 200 nm.
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ZE5 Cell Analyzer High-Impact Publications List
(PDF 187 kB)
A fast-growing list of recent publications with world leading research using the ZE5 Cell Analyzer.
Resources
21 CFR Part 11 Compliance
When working with digital information it is vital to ensure the quality, integrity, and trustworthiness of electronic records. This is where 21 CFR Part 11 compliance comes into the equation.
What to Consider When Buying a Flow Cytometer
Use this buyer's guide for helping to choose the right flow cytometry instrument and configuration options for your lab.
Fluorescent Spectraviewer
A unique, intuitive fluorescent spectraviewer customized for your applications of interest.
Flow Cytometry Basics Guide
An overview of all the important facets of flow cytometry including instrumentation, reagents, controls, experimental setup and more. Get practical advice on building multicolor panels with example protocols, and learn best practice
