What is meant by hydrodynamic focusing?
Hydrodynamic focusing is a technique used to provide more accurate results when using flow cytometers or Coulter counters for determining the size of bacteria or cells.
How is hydrodynamic focusing achieved?
Hydrodynamic focusing is when a fluid of interest with a low flow rate is entered into a system of sheath fluid with higher flow rates. The fluid of interest is compressed by the sheath fluids. Compressed fluids have smaller diffusion lengths and as an effect, they see shorter mixing times [1].
How is hydrodynamic focusing achieved in flow cytometry?
They use sound energy to “usher” the particles into the center of the sheath fluid, where hydrodynamic focusing takes place. This allows high resolution at a high flow rate. In addition, this technology also enables the possibility of running multiple streams at the same time in one flow cytometer.
What do you mean by cytometer?
[ sī-tŏm′ĭ-tər ] n. A standardized glass slide or small glass chamber of known volume, used in counting and measuring cells, especially blood cells.
What is flow cytometry used for?
Flow cytometry is a laser-based technique used to detect and analyze the chemical and physical characteristics of cells or particles. It is most commonly used to evaluate bone marrow, peripheral blood and other fluids in your body.
What is functional use of hydrodynamic focusing in automated hematology cell analyzers?
Platelets and red cells are analyzed by a hydrodynamic focusing system, which eliminates potential errors of coincidence, recirculation and stress changes associated with traditional methods of analysis. This results in more accurate platelet and red cell counts and sizing, even when cell counts are low or high.
How does a cytometer work?
Flow cytometers take in a suspension of monodisperse single, unclumped cells and run them one at a time (single file) past a laser beam where each cell passes through the laser beam, scattered and fluorescent light and are then counted and sorted or further characterized.
What is hydrodynamic focusing in flow cytometry?
What is Hydrodynamic Focusing? Hydrodynamic focusing is a technique that enables users of flow cytometry cells to gauge the size of particles in a flow channel, whether they be blood cells, viruses or bacteria. A typical flow channel will be something as large as 2-3mm in diameter all the way down to a miniscule 50µm.
What are the principles of analyzers used to measure RBC?
The traditional method for counting cells is electrical impedance, also known as the Coulter Principle. It is used in almost every hematology analyzer. Whole blood is passed between two electrodes through an aperture so narrow that only one cell can pass through at a time.