Flow Cytometry
The IDRM Flow Cytometry Core Facility offers a suite of technologies to rapidly profile and sort large populations of cells and particles.
About
The IDRM Flow Cytometry Facility located at the Institute of Developmental and Regenerative Medicine (IDRM) in Oxford plays a vital role to better understand the fundamentals in neuroscience, cardiology, and immunology, and is helping researchers to use advanced technology to achieve their research outcomes. Our facility has more than ten instruments, and we offer four state of the art instruments (three spectral cytometers and one conventional cell sorter) to everyone interested, both in academia and industry.
Instruments
The Sony ID7000 ™ Spectral Cell Analyzer is a high-parameter spectral cytometer designed to deliver comprehensive information from diverse samples with high sensitivity to detect dim and rare cell populations. Spectral cytometry always acquires the whole spectrum of the emitted light for each excitation laser and uses sophisticated unmixing algorithms to separate the signals from each fluorochrome.
The Sony MA900 Cell sorter has 12 fluorescence parameters and offers different modalities of sorting: 2,4-way, single-cell sorting and plate sorting. The cell sorter is installed into a class A2 biosafety cabinet, enabling us to process biohazardous material, such as primary human tissue and cells transfected with non-replicating human viruses.
The Cytek Aurora is a flexible, easy to use spectral flow cytometer, offering the ability to run high complexity assays using a simplified workflow giving high fidelity data. The unique optics of the Aurora offer a one-solution approach using its standardised optical bench to sample light from 365nm to 830nm for multiple laser excitation lines to spectrally sample fluorophores, allowing for better discrimination of these dyes. This "spectral approach" requires no optical configuration adjustments by the operator and allows for the use of a broader range of dyes when compared to conventual flow. The Aurora offers unprecedented fluorochrome flexibility, allowing for the use of highly overlapping dyes such as APC and AF647 in conjunction, enabling panels with more than 24 colours to achieve a 3-laser (Violet, Blue and Red configuration. This provides researchers with greater choice in reagent options and allows for larger panels to be formed, reducing sample burden and research costs per assay and increasing research power.
Services
The IDRM Flow Cytometry Facility offers access and training in flow cytometry and laser safety by highly trained experts. The aim is to achieve a greater understanding of the instrument, which will lead to improved experimental design and data. The training will introduce new users to the hardware and software of our instruments. This training is not meant to provide immediate self-sufficiency but rather for users to get familiar with the basic concepts needed to start the work.
Super Users
The IDRM Flow Cytometry Facility relies on a team of experienced and highly trained individuals, also known as super users, to provide training support and act as a point of contact for external users. Our super users are researchers who have extensive experience in flow cytometry and underwent specialised training to use the facility's Sony ID7000 Spectral Cytometers and Sony MA900 Cell Sorter