Flow cytometry is a powerful technique widely used in cell counting, biomarker detection, and cell sorting. However, it has low information content and cannot measure the morphology and spatial information of a single cell. Compared with traditional flow cytometry, imaging flow cytometry increases the number of parameters that can be measured by providing cell morphology and spatial information in a high-throughput and controllable manner. Therefore, it is widely used in biological disciplines, such as immunology, cell biology, and microbiology.

Figure 1．Imaging flow cytometry acquires images of single cells in high throughput (Doan, et al., 2018).

Imaging flow cytometry (IFC) is a powerful tool that combines flow cytometry with digital microscopes, allowing us to collect information from individual cells to generate quantitative high-throughput imaging data. CD BioSciences uses imaging flow cytometry to provide you with a series of imaging analysis services such as cell counting, cell apoptosis, and cell proliferation. If you have any needs, please feel free to contact us.

Summary of Imaging Flow Cytometry (IFC) Techniques

Features	ImageStream	Multiple-view	Temporally Coded Excitation	STEAM	FIRE	Spatial–temporal Transformation
Illumination (spectral range)	Laser	LED	Laser	Pulse laser	Laser	Laser
	LED		LED			LED
Detector	TDI CCD	CMOS	CMOS	Single-pixel detector	PMT	PMT
Modality	Fluorescence	Transmission	Fluorescence	Transmission	Fluorescence	Fluorescence
	Transmission		Transmission	Phase contrast		Transmission
	Side-scatter	Laser				Back-scatter
Data transfer & computation complexity	Simple	Simple	Simple	Complex	Complex	Simple
Inherit functions from FC	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Compatibility with sorting	No	No	No	No	No	Yes
Image resolution	Moderate	Moderate	High	Moderate	High	Moderate
Throughput (cells per s)	Up to 1000	∼10000	∼2000	Up to 100000	∼50000	>1000
Real-time processing solution	Yes	No	No	Yes	No	Yes

FC: conventional flow cytometry.

Application of Imaging Flow Cytometry

Advantages of Imaging Flow Cytometry

• High fluorescence sensitivity
• High image resolution capability
• High-speed processing
• Ability to analyze changes in cell or nuclear morphology
• Rare cell detection capability
• The ability to understand the interaction between cells

1. Doan, Minh, et al. "Diagnostic potential of imaging flow cytometry." Trends in biotechnology 36.7 (2018): 649-652.
2. Han, Yuanyuan, et al. "Imaging technologies for flow cytometry." Lab on a Chip 16.24 (2016): 4639-4647.

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Please note: Our services can only be used for research purposes. Do not use in diagnostic or therapeutic procedures!