High-throughput microfluidic imaging flow cytometry

Abstract

Recently, microfluidic-based flow cytometry platforms have been shown to be powerful tools for the manipulation and analysis of single cells and micron-sized particles in flow. That said, current microfluidic flow cytometers are limited in both their analytical throughput and spatial resolution, due to their reliance on single point interrogation schemes. Conversely, high-speed imaging techniques can be applied to a wide variety of problems in which analyte molecules are manipulated at high linear velocities. Such an approach allows a detailed visualization of dynamic events through acquisition of a series of image frames captured with high temporal and spatial resolution. Herein, we describe some of the most significant recent advances in the development of multi-parametric, optofluidic imaging flow cytometry for the enumeration of complex cellular populations.