Flow cytometry user groups are communities of people who share an interest in flow cytometry and FACS services who are brought together under circumstances where they may not normally interact. These local user groups provide a platform for sharing knowledge and expertise, discussing new developments and applications, and networking with other professionals in the geographic […]

Antibodies, also known as Immunoglobulins or Igs, consist of two heavy and two light chains.  The antigen binding part of the antibody (shown in purple, Figure 1), is the variable region and capable of recognizing a specific antigen out of millions of possible antigens.   The remaining sequence of the antibody is relatively conserved, and termed […]

The Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) is a nonprofit organization that develops and publishes standards that are accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and are referenced in government regulations and international standards.  As a volunteer-driven, membership-supported organization, CLSI promotes documents on a variety of specialty areas, from laboratory basics to quality management […]

Why pigs?   2019 is the year of the Pig on the Chinese calendar, and pigs have been part of human history for a very long time.  Pigs were domesticated independently in Europe and Asia ~9000 years ago from wild boar (Guiffra, 2000), and have been part of human agricultural practices since then.  Because they […]

American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS) Flow Cytometry Action Programming Committee – leveraging industry leader experience to expand the field of flow cytometry Founded by Virginia Litwin in 2007, the AAPS Flow Cytometry Action Programming Committee (APC) was formed to create a forum for in depth discussions of the strengths and specific challenges surrounding the […]

If you are looking to incorporate flow cytometry into your study or clinical trial, ensuring that precise and uniform data is generated by contract flow labs can seem difficult, or even overwhelming.  In fact, a study conducted by Maecker et al. 2005 revealed that in a protocol conducted across 15 different laboratories, the inter-laboratory coefficient […]

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Controls are a vital part of any rigorous scientific process. Any experiment worth its peer-reviewed credentials requires controls to verify these data are valid, and that variables outside of the parameter of interest are not confounding the results in any way. In the rapidly-expanding field of flow cytometry, it is no different.  However, finding the […]

The quality of water has serious effects on humans. We don’t go out into the forest and drink from steams for fear of bacteria from a host of sources. Drinking bad water can make someone violently ill; we boil it, filter it, treat it with ozone, and subject it to UV radiation to make it […]

Flow Contract Site Laboratory now has TWO 10 color cytometers! They have been validated and are now in use in our laboratory. Our previous max color cytometer was up to 8 colors, meaning now we can analyze cells with two more markers. These 10 color cytometers allow for more complex antibody panel design and can […]