Flow cytometry is a powerful technique in the field of biology and research, and while it might seem like a substantial investment, it can actually save your lab money in the long run. Here are five ways flow cytometry can contribute to cost savings:
Flow cytometry allows for the analysis of individual cells within a heterogeneous mixture. This means you can analyze smaller sample volumes to get an accurate picture of the entire sample and reduce the consumption of expensive reagents, antibodies, and other materials. Traditional bulk analyses might require larger amounts of your sample, which can be costly over time and includes the added risk of losing your entire sample if done incorrectly.
Flow cytometers can analyze thousands of cells per second, enabling you to gather a substantial amount of data quickly. This high throughput can lead to faster experimental turnaround times, allowing your lab to be more productive and potentially reducing labor costs.
Flow cytometry provides large-scale quantitative data about entire cell populations and their characteristics. This accuracy can help prevent costly errors that might arise from using less precise methods. Inaccurate results can lead to wasted time, materials, and resources.
Flow cytometry can simultaneously measure multiple parameters on a single cell, such as size, granularity, and fluorescence intensity of multiple colors. This reduces the need for running separate experiments for each parameter and saves you time, resources, and samples.
By precisely identifying and sometimes sorting cell populations, flow cytometry can aid in both knowing the percentage of or selecting only the cells of interest for downstream applications. This ensures that subsequent experiments, such as gene expression analysis, genetic modification via transfection, or other cell culture experiments, are focused and only use the cells with the desired characteristics. This can reduce the need for repeated experiments and prevent the waste of valuable cells.