Flow cytometry of another dimension: complementary information, label-free and cost-efficient!
Impedance Flow Cytometry provides a straightforward and cost-efficient solution for single-cell analysis, eliminating the need for dyes, markers, and incubation. Cell viability, cell count, and cell metabolic status can be determined quickly and with minimal effort.
- Viability, counting, cell metabolic status, including apoptosis
- Real-time monitoring of cell cultures
- Label-free analysis of all cell types
- Works with turbid, opaque, and auto-fluorescent media
- Cost-efficient in investment, maintenance, and cost per sample
- Portable and desktop solutions
The measurement of cell viability, cell metabolic status, and counting all happens in parallel in a microfluidic chip, appropriate to the cell size. Cells from 1 to 50 μm and even larger spheroids up to 250 μm can be measured. Unlike conventional flow cytometry based on optics, Impedance Flow cytometry measures cell characteristics based on the electrical resistance and the dielectric properties of cells in suspension.
- Information about viability and cell count, metabolic status, and cell health – all in parallel
- For apoptosis measurements, no additional specific markers or kits are required
- Immediate measurement after sample preparation – no incubation needed! From sampling to measurement result in two minutes!
Impedance Flow Cytometry allows real-time monitoring of cell cultures. Immediate results after sampling can be obtained because no markers and incubation time are needed.
- Optimization and control of bioprocesses in bioreactors
- Information about cell health and metabolic status
- Determination of optimal timepoint for harvesting metabolites
Label-free and non-invasive analysis of any kind of cell without the need for a dye or marker and incubation time
- Further Use of measured cells for cell culture, or sorting
- Metabolic status including apoptosis of any kind of cell can be examined
- Immediate results: from sampling to measurement result within 2 minutes
Turbid, opaque, or auto-fluorescent media are a challenge for optical systems. Cell analysis with Impedance Flow Cytometry works also in these media because detection is based on electrical instead of optical parameters.
- Determination of cell properties of milk and other food matrices
- Determination of cell viability and counting and even of emulsion particles
- Analysis of auto-fluorescent media, e.g., microalgae
One of the advantages of Impedance Flow Cytometry compared to optical methods are lower costs: for the instrument, the costs per sample, and also for the maintenance. And sustainability is a plus!
- Investment costs for the instrument are much lower than for conventional flow cytometers.
- With one microfluidic chip, a minimum of 1000 samples can be measured. This lowers the cost per sample below 2 CHF.
- Maintenance of the instruments is less costly than for optical instrument because no calibration is needed.
- No costs for disposal of toxic chemicals or plastic waste.
The standard desktop instrument for analysis of smaller cells is the Ampha X30 for cell sizes from 1 to 50 μm. Impedance Flow Cytometry is not based on optics and thus does not require calibration. This allows a portable solution for applications outside the lab.
- Ampha X30: one instrument, 4 chips, all cells between 1 and 50 μm
- Ampha Z40: for cells and spheroids from 50 to 250 μm
- Ampha P20: the portable cell analyzer
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