About Us
Come learn about the latest technological advances in flow cytometry!
Save the Date: April 6, 2026 from 12-1:30pm
Virginia Tech BD FACSDiscover A8 Cell Analyzer Seminar
Steger Hall Auditorium, Room 145
Lunch will be provided for registered attendees following the talk.
Click here for more information.
What is Flow Cytometry
- Cytometry is the measurement of chemical and/or physical characteristics of cells.
- In FLOW cytometry, these measurements are made as cells in fluid suspension pass one by one through a measurement apparatus, the flow cytometer.
- Traditional flow cytometers measure fluorescence intensity and light scatter.
- Imaging cytometers measure size, shape, location, and texture in addition to intensity.
- Distinct measurements are taken from each cell in a sample, giving a distribution as opposed to an average.
How Flow Cytometry Works
- Cells pass one at a time through focused laser beams.
- The light that emerges from each cell is collected.
- The collected light is evaluated by graphical presentation.
- For sorting, cells of interest are captured and purified (>98% purity in most cases).
- For imaging, pixels are tracked down the detector surface and reconstructed by the software.
Common Applications
- Apoptosis and viability
- Cell receptors
- Cytokines
- Activation molecules
- Fluorescent proteins
- Cell counting
- Cell sorting
- DNA content and cell cycle
- Proliferation
- Rare event analysis
- Cytometric bead arrays
- Microbial viability
- Intracellular markers
- Phagocytosis