Flow Cytometry Cell Counting Beads
Flow cytometry provides a rapid method to quantify cell characteristics. However, most flow cytometers cannot directly provide the cell concentration or absolute count of cells in a sample. Absolute cell counts have been widely used in quantifying cell populations and disease progression, including in studies of stem cells. Absolute cell counts are generally obtained either by combining a separate cell concentration determination from a hematology analyzer with flow cytometric population data (multiple platform testing) or by adding an internal microsphere counting standard to the flow cytometric sample (single platform testing). The single platform method is preferred as it is technically less complicated and it avoids interlaboratory variation and underestimations, making it more accurate than multiple platform testing.
We offer multiple products for cell counting—Invitrogen CountBright Plus and CountBright Absolute Counting Beads, Invitrogen AccuCheck Counting Beads and also one product, Invitrogen LIVE/DEAD BacLight Bacterial Viability and Counting Kit, for reliably distinguishing and quantitating live and dead bacteria with the aid of a flow cytometer, even in a mixed population containing a range of bacterial types.
