Clinical Applications of Flow Cytometry

Flow cytometry is a powerful technology used to analyze and measure the physical, chemical, and/or gene expression characteristics of cells or particles. This technique allows clinical laboratories and researchers to measure numerous properties of individual cells in a rapid, multiplexed, and quantitative manner. Flow cytometry is used for immunophenotyping of a variety of specimens, including whole blood, bone marrow, serous cavity fluids, cerebrospinal fluid, urine, and solid tissues. Characteristics that can be measured include cell size, cytoplasmic complexity, DNA or RNA content, and a wide range of membrane-bound and intracellular proteins.