MP Flow Cytometry Resource Guide
MP Flow Cytometry Resource Guide
MP Flow Cytometry Resource Guide
The most complete reference on fluorescent labeling and detection available, this resource features extensive references and technical notes, and
contains over 3,000 technology solutions representing a wide range of biomolecular labeling and detection reagents. See the online version of
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The next step in the evolution of cell-by-cell analysis is here. Our scientists share various techniques
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Antigen detection
Instrument set-up
Sample preparation
and calibration
sample preparation reagents, which include reagents for blood GAS004) consists of matched Fixation Reagent (Medium A) and
cell preservation, red blood cell lysis, and sample fixation and Permeabilization Reagent (Medium B) for simultaneous analysis
permeabilization, are designed to help you achieve the best of intracellular and cell-surface antigens in the same cell
possible results. Learn more about these products and get population (Figure 1). This procedure facilitates antibody access
protocols at lifetechnologies.com/flow-sample to intracellular structures and leaves the morphological light-
scattering characteristics of the cells intact. These formulations
reduce background staining and allow simultaneous addition
Cell preservation of permeabilization medium and fluorophore-labeled
Sample preparation
for analysis. 10 5
105
γ-IFN–PE-Cy®7 fluorescence
marrow. Treatment with this reagent leads to both the lysis of 106 106
red blood cells and the fixation of white cells. Treatment does 10 5
105
Fixation and permeabilization antibody (Cat. No. A18713) and Pacific Blue dye–conjugated anti–mouse ™
tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) antibody (Cat. No. RM90128). Data were
collected using the Attune Acoustic Focusing Cytometer (blue/violet)
®
• Compatible with analysis of most cellular antigens fluorescence. Pacific Blue conjugate fluorescence was detected using 405
™
nm excitation and a 450/40 nm bandpass emission filter. (A) γ-IFN and TNF-α
• No effect on cellular morphological scatter
antibody co-staining of total mouse splenocytes, gated on lymphocytes, that
• Reduced background staining were left unstimulated (left) or stimulated (right) with PMA and ionomycin
in the presence of brefeldin A. (B) CD4+ T cell expression of TNF-α (left) and
• Proven protocols γ-IFN (right) after stimulation as described above.
• Gentle—column-free separation and inert bead surfaces translate to gentler with Dynabeads®
handling of your cells and reduce the risk of contaminants in the preparations
• High yields—tube-based separation allows you to achieve excellent recovery of cells
Sample preparation
Separate
bead-captured
When cells are removed from their natural environment, there is a risk that cells with a
Dynal MPC™
magnet
experimental procedures will negatively impact cell phenotype and function. Choosing
the right cell separation method is therefore critical to downstream experiments.
Dynabeads magnetic beads are superparamagnetic, monosized polymer beads coated
®
with a thin, inert polymer shell to encase the magnetic material (Figure 2). This design
helps to eliminate the risk that any unwanted material such as iron is left in the sample Transfer
after separation. In addition, since the cells are never bound to the beads (negative- supernatant with
untouched cells
to a new tube
isolation and depletion beads) or are released from the beads after the gentle magnetic
separation (positive-isolation beads), the final cell sample is of high purity and viability,
with no process-derived remnants that could affect the results (Figure 3).
Negatively Positively
isolated cells isolated cells
(untouched) (bead-captured)
2 ads
ove be
Dynabeads magnetic beads enable gentle tube-based isolation of human cells directly
® Rem 3
downstream assay, including flow cytometry (Figure 4). Dynabeads products are available
®
for isolating human T cells, B cells, stem cells, NK cells, monocytes, dendritic cells, beads for positive or negative tube-based cell
endothelial cells, tumor cells, leukocytes, and granulocytes. isolation.
2,000
• Negative isolation, resulting in untouched cells
1,500
• Depletion of unwanted cell types or positive cell isolation for
750
Count
Count
1,000
molecular applications
500
500
0250
If you can’t find a ready-to-use product for human cell isolation, we have a range of 0
102 103 104 105 102 103 10
Dynabeads products that can be combined with an antibody of your choice to create a
®
CD4 FITC CD4 FITC
tailored cell isolation tool that include: streptavidin Dynabeads , secondary antibody–
®
1,000 1,250
2,000
lifetechnologies.com/humancellisolation
1,500
750
Count
Count
1,000
500
500
0250
If you can’t find a ready-to-use product for mouse cell isolation, we have a range of Dynabeads products ®
that can be combined with an antibody of your choice to create a tailored cell isolation tool: streptavidin
Dynabeads , secondary antibody–coated Dynabeads , and surface activated Dynabeads . Learn more at
® ® ®
lifetechnologies.com/mousecellisolation
104
400
Count
300
103
200
Column-based isolation
300
104
250
Count
200
103
150
100
102 Viability:
50 63%
0
102 103 104 105 102 103 104 105
CD4 +
CD4 +
Figure 5. Isolation of CD4 T cells from mouse spleen cells. Cell isolation using the Dynabeads FlowComp Mouse CD4 kit (top)
+ ® ™
results in substantially higher purity (97%) and viability (86%) than column-based (bottom) positive cell isolation (yielding purity and
viability of 78% and 63%, respectively).
Sample preparation
200 assays GAS004
Fixation Medium (Medium A) NA NA GPR 100 mL GAS001S100
Permeabilization Medium (Medium B) NA NA GPR 100 mL GAS002S100
Dynabeads cell
®
Dynabeads FlowComp Human CD4 Kit
® ™
Human T cells RUO 3 mL 11361D
isolation
Dynabeads CD4 Positive Isolation Kit
®
Human T cells RUO 5 mL 11331D
Dynabeads Untouched Human CD4 T Cells Kit
® ™
Human T cells RUO 1 kit 11352D
Dynabeads FlowComp Human CD8 Kit
® ™
Human T cells RUO 3 mL 11362D
Dynabeads CD8 Positive Isolation Kit
®
Human T cells RUO 5 mL 11333D
Dynabeads Untouched Human CD8 T Cells Kit
® ™
Human T cells RUO 1 kit 11348D
Dynabeads FlowComp Mouse CD4 Kit
® ™
Mouse T cells RUO 3 mL 11461D
DETACHaBEAD Mouse CD4 Kit
®
Mouse T cells RUO 5 mL 12406D
Dynabeads Untouched Mouse CD4 Cells Kit
® ™
Mouse T cells RUO 2 x 10 mL 11415D
Dynabeads FlowComp Mouse CD8 Kit
® ™
Mouse T cells RUO 1 kit 11462D
Dynabeads Untouched Mouse CD8 Cells Kit
® ™
Mouse T cells RUO 2 x 10 mL 11417D
N/A, not applicable.
* GPR, general-purpose reagent; IVD, in vitro diagnostic use; RUO. For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.
products at lifetechnologies.com/flow-standards
Number of particles
Alignment
Instrument set-up and calibration
2.0 µm
(Cat. No. A16501, A16504). Each version is available in two bead 10 µm
establish parameters that are suitable for analyzing sub-micron dye and R-phycoerythrin (R-PE). For proper interpretation of the
particles. For example, the kit can be used to check: data collected, it is important to know that the fluorescent signal
being recorded for Alexa Fluor 488 dye is, in fact, coming from
®
• Resolution limit and dynamic range of particle size Alexa Fluor 488 dye and not from R-PE, which happens to emit
®
106 2 µm
AbC bead kits provide a consistent, accurate, and simple-to-
™
1 µm
Particle fluorescence
using 530/30 nm BP
105
use technique for the setting of flow cytometry compensation
104
when using 1) fluorophore-conjugated hamster, mouse,
0.5 µm
0.2 µm
103 0.1 µm
102
100
101
Relative intensity (%)
100 75
102 103 104 105 106
Side scatter 50
25
Figure 8. Flow Cytometry Sub-micron Particle Size Reference Kit. Signals
from (the kit has six particle sizes; only five were used here) five different-sized
0
particles of the Flow Cytometry Sub-micron Particle Size Reference Kit 300 400 500 600 700 800 900
(Cat. No. F13839) were acquired using 488 nm excitation and a 530/30 nm Wavelength (nm)
bandpass (BP) emission filter on the Attune Acoustic Focusing Cytometer.
®
The diameters of the five different green-fluorescent microspheres are Figure 9. Emission profiles of Alexa Fluor 488 dye (green curve) and R-PE
®
rabbit, or rat antibodies (AbC Total Antibody Compensation ArC Amine Reactive Compensation Bead Kit
™
™
No. A10344, Figure 11); or 3) using fluorophore-conjugated • Optimized for all LIVE/DEAD Fixable Dead Cell Stain kits ®
specific immunoglobulin, and 2) negative beads, which have no • Accurate and consistent results
antibody binding capacity. After incubation with a fluorophore-
conjugated primary antibody (hamster, mouse, rat, or rabbit,
The ArC Amine Reactive Compensation Bead Kit (Cat. No.
™
800
intense
800 MouseMouse
fluorescent staining. In contrast,
IgG2aIgG2a
only
Rat IgG2a
the cell-surface
Rat IgG2a
Number of events
Number of events
Number of events
amines IgG3of viable cells are available to react with the dye,
700 700 700 700 Rat IgG2c
MouseMouse IgG3 Rat IgG2c
size for each lot is listed on the component vial). The bead 600 600
MouseMouse
IgGM IgGM 600 600 Rat IgGM
Rat IgGM
500 resulting
500 in relatively dim staining.500The500 difference in fluorescence
suspensions are supplied in dropper vials for convenient
intensity between the live and dead cell populations is typically
400 400 400 400
A B C PE fluorescence
PE fluorescence D PE fluorescence
PE fluorescence
1,000 1,000 700 700 800 800
900 900 MouseMouse
IgG1 IgG1 Rat IgG1
Rat IgG1 Armenian hamster
Armenian IgG IgG
hamster RabbitRabbit monoclonal
monoclonal IgG IgG
900 900
800 800 MouseMouse
IgG2a IgG2a Rat IgG2a
Rat IgG2a 600 600 SyrianSyrian
hamster IgG IgG
hamster 700 700 RabbitRabbit polyclonal
polyclonal IgG IgG
800 800
MouseMouse
IgG2b IgG2b Rat IgG2b
Rat IgG2b
Number of events
Number of events
Number of events
Number of events
Number of events
Number of events
Number of events
Number of events
700 700 700 700 Rat IgG2c 500 500 600 600
MouseMouse
IgG3 IgG3 Rat IgG2c
600 600 600 600 Rat IgGM 500 500
MouseMouse
IgGM IgGM Rat IgGM 400 400
500 500 500 500 400 400
400 400 400 400 300 300
300 300
300 300 300 300 200 200
200 200 200 200
200 200
100 100 100 100
100 100 100 100
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
101 101 102 102 103 103 104 104 105 105 106 106 101 101 102 102 103 103 104 104 105 105 106 106 101 101 102 102 103 103 104 104 105 105 106 106 101 101 102 102 103 103 104 104 105 105 106 106
PE fluorescence
PE fluorescence PE fluorescence
PE fluorescence PE fluorescence
PE fluorescence PE fluorescence
PE fluorescence
700 700 800 800
Figure
600
10.Armenian
Armenian
Histograms
hamster
600 Syrian Syrian
hamster
IgG IgG
showing the staining of theRabbit
AbC Total
Rabbit
monoclonal Antibody
monoclonal
IgG IgG Compensation Bead Kit. Signal separation of the positive capture beads for mouse (A),
™
hamsterhamster
IgG IgG 700 700 RabbitRabbit
polyclonal
polyclonal
IgG IgG
rat (B), and hamster (C) monoclonal antibodies, and rabbit (D) monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies. Beads were labeled with an optimized amount of each PE
Number of events
Number of events
Number of events
Number of events
400 400
400 400
300 300
300 300
200 200
200 200
100 100 100 100
0 0 0 0
101 101 102 102 103 103 104 104 105 105 106 106 101 101 102 102 103 103 104 104 105 105 106 106
PE fluorescence
PE fluorescence PE fluorescence
PE fluorescence
microspheres to allow easy compensation of the LIVE/DEAD Fixable Dead Cell Stains: the ArC reactive ® ™
beads (Component A), which bind any of the amine reactive dyes, and the ArC negative beads (Component B), ™
which have no reactivity. After incubation with any amine reactive dye, the two kit components provide distinct
positive and negative populations of beads that can be used to set compensation (Figure 12). The ArC Amine ™
Reactive Compensation Bead Kit can be combined with the AbC Anti-Mouse Bead Kit for use with fluorophore- ™
conjugated mouse antibodies, allowing even more consistent and accurate compensation for multicolor
immunophenotyping experiments that also incorporate a LIVE/DEAD Fixable Dead Cell Stain. ®
We offer two products for cell counting—CountBright Absolute Counting Beads and AccuCheck Counting Beads.
™
See Table 2 on the next page to determine which kit is right for your experiment.
CD3-FITC fluorescence
200 200
Events counted
Events counted
104
150 150
103
100 100
50 50 102
0
-102
0
-102 0 102 103 104 105 -350 -102 0 102 103 104 105 -102 0 102 103 104 105
PE fluorescence FITC fluorescence CD56-PE fluorescence
Figure 11. Compensation using the AbC Anti-Mouse Bead Kit. (A) Phycoerythrin (PE)-conjugated mouse anti-human CD56 antibody (Cat. No. MHCD5604) was
™
used with AbC capture beads for a positive signal and with negative beads for a negative signal. (B) FITC-conjugated mouse anti-human CD3 antibody
™
(Cat. No. MHCD03014) was used with AbC capture beads for a positive signal and with negative beads for a negative signal. (C) Dual parameter plot showing
™
gated human lymphocytes labeled with PE-conjugated mouse anti-human CD56 and FITC-conjugated mouse anti-human CD3 antibodies after compensation was
performed with the AbC Anti-Mouse Bead Kit (Cat. No. A10344).
™
A 400 B C 350
350
350 300
300
300
Events counted
Events counted
250
Events counted
250
250
200
200
200
150 150
150
100 100
100
50 50 50
0 0 0
-102 0 102 103 104 105 -288 -102 0 102 103 104 105 -715 -102 0 102 103 104 105
LIVE/DEAD® Fixable Violet stain fluorescence LIVE/DEAD® Fixable Green stain fluorescence LIVE/DEAD® Fixable Red stain fluorescence
Figure 12. Staining profile of the ArC Amine Reactive Compensation Bead Kit components with 3 LIVE/DEAD Fixable Dead Cell Stain Kits. (A) LIVE/DEAD
™ ® ®
Fixable Violet dye stained beads (Cat. No. L34955) were analyzed with 405 nm excitation, emission was collected with a 450/50 nm bandpass filter. (B) LIVE/DEAD ®
Fixable Green dye stained beads (Cat. No. L23101) were analyzed with 488 nm excitation, emission was collected with a 525/50 nm bandpass filter. (C) LIVE/DEAD ®
Fixable Far Red dye stained beads (Cat. No. L10120) were analyzed using 633 nm excitation, emission was collected with a 660/20 nm bandpass filter.
AccuCheck Counting Whole Bead A: 6.40 µm Bead A: 488 Bead A: 575–585 Number of cells and RUO PCB100
Beads blood Bead B: 6.36 µm Bead B: 635 Bead B: 660–680 accuracy of pipetting
*RUO, research use only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.
a calibrated suspension of microspheres that are brightly the advantages of direct flow cytometric immunophenotyping with
fluorescent across a wide range of excitation and emission the use of two different fluorescent beads (A and B beads). These
wavelengths (UV to 635 nm excitation and 385 to 800 nm emission) two fluorospheres are used as a double internal standard for
and contain a known concentration of microspheres. For absolute blood volume calculation. A known volume of AccuCheck Counting
counts, a specific volume of the microsphere suspension is added Beads is added to the same known volume of stained blood in a
to a specific volume of sample, so that the ratio of sample volume lysed/no-wash technique. The beads are counted along with cells.
to microsphere volume is known. The volume of sample analyzed Because the concentration of beads is known, the number of
can be calculated from the number of microsphere events, and cells per microliter (the absolute count) is obtained by relating the
can be used with cell events to determine cell concentration number of cells counted to the total number of fluorescent bead
(Figure 13). In general, at least 1,000 bead events should be events. The cell number is then multiplied by the number of total
acquired to assure a statistically significant determination of fluorospheres per unit of volume. As the AccuCheck Counting
sample volume. Beads system contains two different fluorospheres in a known
proportion, the accuracy of the assay pipetting can be verified
CountBright Absolute Counting Beads can be used with
™
using the proportion of both types of beads.
any sample type, including lysed/no-wash whole blood. The
microspheres in the reagents are approximately 7 µm in diameter
and have settling properties similar to lymphocytes. Sample
preparation steps that can lead to cell or microsphere loss, such
as washes, should be avoided. CountBright beads can be used
™
Figure 13. CountBright Absolute Counting Beads. A mixture of live and heat-
™
killed Jurkat cells were treated with reagents in the LIVE/DEAD Viability/
®
(Cat. No. C36950) were added to the sample, which was then analyzed by flow
cytometry using 488 nm excitation. Calcein fluorescence was collected with a
530/30 nm bandpass filter and ethidium homodimer-1 (EthD-1) fluorescence
was collected with a 610 nm longpass filter. The data show clear separation of
live and dead cells, as well as separation of the counting beads.
Cell Sorting Set-Up Beads for Green- Green-yellow 532, 561/575 RUO 3 mL C16509
Yellow Lasers
Cell Sorting Set-Up Beads for Red Red 633/680 RUO 3 mL C16507
Lasers
Compensation AbC Total Antibody Compensation
™
NA NA RUO 1 kit A10497
Bead Kit
AbC Anti-Mouse Bead Kit
™
NA NA RUO 1 kit A10344
AbC Anti-Rat/Hamster Bead Kit
™
NA NA RUO 1 kit A10389
ArC Amine Reactive Compensation
™
NA NA RUO 1 kit A10346
Bead Kit
Absolute cell counting AccuCheck Counting Beads Blue/red 488/575-585 RUO 10 mL PCB100
(Bead A)
CountBright Absolute Counting Beads
™
UV to red UV to 635/385 to 800 RUO 5 mL C36950
N/A, not applicable.
* Excitation and emission maximum wavelengths, in nm.
† RUO, research use only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.
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Classic
CD4 fluorescent
CD4 Pacific Green
Pacific Green dyes and tandem
TM TM
dyesPE
Foxp3 PE
Foxp3 CD11c PE-Cy
®
CD11c 7
PE-Cy 7
®
CD11b FITC
CD11b FITC
A wide variety of fluorescent dye–conjugated primary antibodies Figure 14. Multiparameter (10 color)® analysis
® of murine regulatory T cells and
FigureFigure
1. Multiparameter
1. Multiparameter(10-color)
(10-color)
analysis
analysis
of murine
of murine
regulatory
regulatory
T cellsTand
cellsdendritic
and dendritic
cells with
cells
thethewithAttune
the
NxTAttune
NxT Acoustic
NxT Acoustic
Focusing
Focusing
Cytometer.
Cytometer.
is available, including antibodies conjugated with Alexa dendritic cells with Attune Acoustic Focusing Cytometer. C57BL/6 ®
Lymphocytes
Lymphocytes
were gated
were gated
using FSC/SSC
using FSC/SSC
parameters
parameters
(A, left)
(A,and
left)
B220-expressing
™ and B220-expressing B cells B were
cells omitted
were omitted
from subsequent
from subsequent
analysis analysis
splenocytes were surface stained with primary antibodies to the surface(A, middle).
(A, middle).
Fluor , –Pacific
®
– Blue
+
™
, Pacific
+ Green , and Pacific Orange dyes,
™
+ +
WithinWithin
the B220the ,B220
CD45.2
, CD45.2
gate, Tgate,
cellsTwere
cellsanalyzed
were analyzed
basedbased
on theironexpression
their expression
of CD3of(A,
antigens CD3right).
listed (A,Table
in right).
CD34. This
TCD3
cells
stepTwere
cells
was separated
were separated
followed into two
by fixation into
and populations
two populations
permeabilization
fluorescein, fluorescent proteins (PE, PerCP, and APC), and +
of the
+
sample using the FIX & PERM Cell of
Permeabilization Kit (Cat. No. GAS003,
basedbased
on expression
on expression
of the ofco-receptors
the co-receptors
CD4 orCD4 CD8or(B,
CD8
left).
(B,Within
left). Within
the CD4 theTCD4
cellsTthere
cells is
there
a subpopulation
is a subpopulation of suppressive
suppressive
regulatory
regulatory
T cellsTthat
cells that
®
11 different tandem dye combinations (Table 3). This broad GAS004). Intracellular
– staining
– was performed during the permeabilization step
express
express
the transcription
the transcription
factor factor
Foxp3Foxp3
and theandcell
the
surface
cell surface
marker marker
CD25 (IL-2Rα)
CD25 (IL-2Rα)
(B, right).
(B, right).
CD3 cells CD3 werecellsseparated
were separated
to show to ashow
rareapopulation
rare population
range
+ +of
+ dye +options becomes even more critical as advances in using PE-conjugated rat anti–mouse Foxp3 antibody. Lymphocytes + were
+ gated
+ +
of CD11c
of CD11c
MHCIIMHCII
, professional
, professional
antigen-presenting
antigen-presenting
dendritic
dendritic
cells (C,
cellsleft).
(C,Splenic
left). Splenic
dendritic
dendritic
cells cancellsbecansubdivided
be subdivided
further further
into CD11b
into CD11b
and CD8and CD8
instrumentation technology allow more and more fluorescent using FSC/SSC parameters (A, left) and B220-expressing B cells were omitted
dendritic
dendritic
cell subsets
cell subsets
(C, right),
(C, right),
each possessing
each possessing
uniqueunique
antigen antigen
presentation
presentation
properties.
fromproperties.
subsequent analysis (A, right). Within the B220-, CD45.2+ gate, T cells were
colors to be used (Figure 14 and Table 4).
analyzed based on their expression of CD3 (A, bottom right). CD3+ T cells were
separated into two populations based on expression of the co-receptors CD4
or CD8 (B, left). Within the CD4+ T cells there is a subpopulation of suppressive
regulatory T cells that express the transcription factor Foxp3 and the cell
surface marker CD25 (IL-2Rα) (B, right). CD3- cells were separated to show a
rare population of CD11c+ MHCII+, professional antigen-presenting dendritic
cells (C, left). Splenic dendritic cells can be subdivided further into CD11b+
and CD8+ dendritic cell subsets (C, right), each possessing unique antigen
presentation properties.
Antigen detection
®
Table 4. Products used in multiparametric analysis of T cells and dendritic cells (Figure 14).
Target Host Fluorophore Laser Emission max (nm) Cat. No.
MHCII Rat Pacific Blue dye ™
Violet 455 A14901
CD4 Rat Pacific Green dye ™
Violet 500 C11207
B220 Rat Pacific Orange dye ™
Violet 551 RM2630
CD11b Rat FITC Blue 525 RM2801
Foxp3 Rat R-PE Blue 575 N/A
CD3 Hamster PerCP-Cy 5.5 ®
Blue 695 A14784
CD11c Hamster PE-Cy 7 ®
Blue 767 A15849
CD25 (IL-2Rα) Rat APC Red 660 N/A
CD45.2 Mouse APC-Cy 7 ®
Red 767 A18642
CD8 Rat Alexa Fluor 700 ®
Red 719 MCD0829
* All products are Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures unless otherwise indicated.
N/A-not available for purchase
7 6 58
5,000,000
• Excited by 405 nm or 488 nm, maximizing violet laser use A
• Combine with existing organic dyes, increasing the number 4,000,000 3. Qdot® 585
4. Qdot® 605
0
400 450 500 550 600 650 700 750 800
Wavelength (nm)
Qdot antibody conjugates possess a bright fluorescence
®
Fluorescence emission
conjugates, Qdot antibody conjugates can be excited with any
®
using a single excitation source, and their very long Stokes shifts
enable better, more efficient multicolor assays using the 405 nm
violet laser. Available in multiple colors for use in flow cytometry 450 500 550 600 650 700 750 800 850 900
Conjugate ‡
Target* Clone
Qdot 605
®
Qdot 655 ®
Qdot 705
®
Qdot 800
®
CD19 †
6D5 Q22160 §
Q10379 Q22161 §
Q22162 §
or mCherry fusion proteins in flow cytometry applications (Figure 16). Full-length 500
Number of cells
mCherry was used as the immunogen, and the resulting monoclonal IgG2a-isotype
400
antibody detects denatured and native forms of the protein. Because of its improved
brightness, superior photostability, and extremely rapid maturation rate, mCherry 300
monomeric red fluorescent protein is becoming the red fluorescent protein of choice for 200
monitoring physiological processes and detecting transgene expression.
100
0
102 103 104 105 106
Table 6. mCherry rat monoclonal antibody (clone 16D7) conjugates. Pacific Blue fluorescence
™
Dye conjugate Excitation laser color Excitation/Emission (nm) Cat. No. Figure 16. Histogram of gated U2-OS cells
expressing mCherry protein and labeled with
Pacific Blue dye
™
Violet 405/455 M11238 Pacific Blue dye-conjugated rat anti-mCherry
™
Antibody
Antibody labeling
• Polyclonal
• Monoclonal
• Recombinant
We offer a number of Molecular Probes labeling kits for the direct attachment of
®
even biotin to IgG antibody at levels less than 10 µg up to 1 mg. Directly labeled antibodies β-Galactosidase
allow you to use more than one same-species antibody in a single staining experiment. GalT(Y289L)
UDP-GalNAz
You can use traditional labeling chemistries optimized for your application or site-specific
labeling using click-chemistry technology. Below we describe two options for easy
labeling of flow cytometry primary antibodies. To find more information and products,
Antigen detection
go to lifetechnologies.com/flow-antibodylabeling
N3 N3
N3 N3
The SiteClick system represents a new paradigm for the universal site-selective labeling
™
of antibodies. This modular, click chemistry–mediated method allows you to enzymatically Site-selectively
label essentially any antibody on its heavy chain N-linked glycans. In contrast to standard labeled antibody
antibody labeling techniques, which can be tedious and inconsistent, the SiteClick site-
™
selective approach produces highly robust and reproducible labeling of antibodies with an system. The first step in the SiteClick antibody ™
agents used in reductive cysteine labeling, leaving partially dissociated antibody alkyne). The average degree of labeling is 3–3.5
fragments that result in decreased antibody binding and yield. labels per antibody.
labeling for different antibodies is very high, precluding the need to optimize labeling of
each newly acquired antibody. To find out more, go to lifetechnologies.com/flow-siteclick
20
Zenon labeling technology provides a versatile, easy-to-use system for labeling mouse
®
0
IgG1, IgG2a, and IgG2b isotypes, as well as rabbit, goat, and human IgG antibodies, with SiteClick™ SiteClick™
our premier Molecular Probes dyes as well as other fluorophores, biotin, photoproteins,
® Qdot® 605 R-PE
and enzymes. This technology offers several advantages over direct chemical labeling, Figure 18. Efficient antibody labeling for both
including: novice and experienced scientists.The SiteClick ™
• Speed—the entire labeling procedure takes only 10 minutes R-PE Antibody Labeling Kit were used by both
a novice user and an expert user to label an
• Efficiency—labels nearly 100% of the primary antibodies in solution anti-CD4 monoclonal antibody in triplicate. The
labeled antibodies were used to label CD4-positive
• Economy—labels submicrogram amounts of antibody cells isolated from a single human blood donor,
• Simplicity—no pre- or postlabeling purification of the antibody is required with subsequent analysis by flow cytometry; the
reference sample is a commercially available
• Flexibility—easily use multiple primary antibodies in a single experiment R-PE anti-CD4 antibody conjugate. The data show
percentages of CD4-positive cells relative to
total cells, and the error bars indicate variation
Zenon labeling technology uses a fluorophore-, biotin-, or enzyme-labeled
®
in the triplicate kit labelings for each user. The
Fab fragment directed against the Fc portion of an intact IgG antibody to form a novice user had never before performed protein
noncovalent labeling complex. To ensure their high affinity and selectivity for the bioconjugation, yet obtained labeling efficiencies
Fc portion of the target antibody, the Zenon labeling reagents have been affinity
® equivalent to those obtained by an expert user.
purified during their preparation. Because the Zenon labeling method is based
®
Our wide selection of Zenon labeling reagents (Table 8) can be mixed and matched,
®
Dye Ex/Em* Mouse IgG1 Mouse IgG2a Mouse IgG2b Rabbit IgG Goat IgG Human IgG
Pacific Blue ™
410/455 Z25041 Z25156
Pacific Green ™
Z11203
Pacific Orange ™
400/551 Z25256 Z25257
Fluorescein 494/518 Z25042 Z25342
Biotin †
Antigen detection
Allophycocyanin (APC) 650/660 Z25051 Z25151 Z25251 Z25351 Z25451
APC-Alexa Fluor 750 ®
650/775 Z25031
Enzymes ‡
19), Qdot labels, biotin, and enzyme labels (horseradish peroxidase and alkaline phosphatase). We also offer
®
antibodies with different immunoreactivities, essential to avoid confounding cross-reactivity when performing
simultaneous secondary immunodetection of two or more targets.
Find a small selection of conjugates in Table 9. Use our online Secondary Antibody Selection Tool to find the
right secondary detection reagent. With this tool, you can specify target IgG class (and form), host, species
reactivity, and conjugate type to narrow your results. Find your secondary antibody now at
lifetechnologies.com/flow-secondarydetection
405 Blue ™
Green ™
Orange ™
488 610–R-PE 647–R-PE 750–APC
Anti-mouse IgG A31553 P10993 P11204 A11001 P852 A20980 A20990 A865 A21006
Anti-rabbit IgG A31556 P10994 P31584 A11008 P2771MP A20981 A20991 A10931
Anti-rat IgG A11006 A10545 A10540
Streptavidin S32351 S11222 S11200 S32365 S11223 S866 S20982 S20992 S868 S21008
S32362*
* Premium grade.
Antigen detection
Figure 19. Simultaneous detection of three cell surface markers using an Alexa Fluor 610–R-phycoerythrin tandem streptavidin conjugate, Alexa Fluor 488
® ®
dye and R-phycoerythrin labels. Lymphocytes from ammonium chloride red blood cell–lysed whole blood were labeled with a biotinylated mouse anti–human
CD3 antibody, washed with 1% bovine serum albumin (BSA) in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), and then incubated with Alexa Fluor 610–R-phycoerythrin
®
tandem dye–labeled streptavidin (Cat. No. S20982). Cells were again washed and then labeled with Alexa Fluor 488–dye conjugated anti-human CD8 antibody
®
and PE-conjugated anti-human CD4 antibody. After a further wash in 1% BSA/PBS, labeling was analyzed on a Becton Dickinson FACScan flow cytometer
®
using excitation at 488 nm. CD8 was detected in the green channel (525 + 10 nm), CD4 in the orange channel (575 + 10 nm) and CD3 in the red channel (>650
nm). The bivariate scatter plots show the expected mutually exclusive populations of (A) CD4 and CD8 positive cells, together with (B) co-positive CD3/CD4 and
(C) CD3/CD8 populations.
• Conjugation—using your antibody or one of ours, with the largest selection of labels available
• Formulation—including azide-free, different buffers, or different concentrations
• Packaging—bulk quantities
• Mixtures—(RUO) antibody cocktails
Antigen detection
simply a critical factor in getting the right answers to other questions, we have a solution 100
Number of cells
for you. For more information and more products, go to
lifetechnologies.com/flow-cellhealth 75
50
Cell viability 25
Cell viability assays can be used to simply distinguish between live and dead cell 0
populations, to correlate with other cell functions or treatments, or to exclude dead cell 102 103 104 105
populations from analyses. Below we describe two different cell viability assay types LIVE/DEAD®
that use only one channel of the flow cytometer, making them especially useful with B
multicolor flow cytometry (Table 10). For more information and more products go to 150 Dead
lifetechnologies.com/flow-cellviability
Live
Number of cells
LIVE/DEAD Fixable Dead Cell Stain Kits
® 100
• Staining retained after fixation for simple live/dead analysis with intracellular
phenotyping 50
LIVE/DEAD®
The LIVE/DEAD Fixable Dead Cell Stain Kits (see the product list, page 30) covalently
®
Figure 20. Retention of LIVE/DEAD® Fixable
bind available amino acids but are excluded from the cytosol of live, healthy cells. The Dead Cell Stains after fixation. The LIVE/ DEAD®
dyes react with surface proteins of both live and dead cells, but label proteins throughout Fixable Aqua Dead Cell Stain Kit (Cat. No. L34957)
was used to differentially stain a mixture of live
the cytoplasm of cells with compromised membranes, causing dead cells to fluoresce at
(left peak) and heat-treated Jurkat cells (right
least 50 times brighter than live cells. Because the labeling is covalent, stained cells can peak). Cells in (A) were not fixed; cells in (B) were
be fixed and permeabilized without losing the viability discrimination signal (Figure 20), fixed in 3.7% formaldehyde following staining.
making these reagents ideal if you want to fix and permeabilize samples and maintain Samples were analyzed by flow cytometry using
dead-cell discrimination during subsequent analysis. LIVE/DEAD Fixable Dead Cell
®
405 nm excitation and ~525 nm emission.
Stains are available to match a range of excitation sources and detection channels. For
compensation control, use the LIVE/DEAD Fixable Dead Cell Stains with the ArC Amine
® ™
Reactive Compensation Bead Kit (A10346; see page 8) for optimal results.
The inadvertent inclusion of sick or dead cells in experiments can dramatically affect
the outcomes. For instance, including dead cells in immunophenotyping analysis
can distort the results, especially for rare phenotypes. Perfetto et al. (2006) showed
Cell analysis
that light-scatter gating during flow cytometry is not enough to exclude all dead cells
from analysis during leukocyte immunophenotyping (see Figure 21 for citation). Using
Molecular Probes LIVE/DEAD Fixable Dead Cell Stains, they were able to efficiently
® ®
exclude dead cells from analysis and, consequently, significantly increase accuracy in
their assays.
SYTOX Dead Cell Stains (see product list, page 30) are excluded from cells with intact membranes but quickly
®
diffuse into cells that have compromised membranes. Once inside, these dyes bind DNA, which produces a
significant enhancement of their fluorescence; live cells remain nonfluorescent and dead cells fluoresce brightly.
SYTOX stains are available to match widely available excitation sources. These dyes are often used in a “dump
®
channel,” with gating on the viable cells for further analysis (Figure 22). No wash step is required; in fact, SYTOX ®
Dead Cell Stains do not bind covalently to DNA, so dye concentrations must be maintained during analysis.
FSC-A
Number of cells
150
Dead
100
50
SSC LIVE/DEAD® Fixable Violet fluorescence
CC D
D
CD4–Cy®5.5-PE fluorescence
CD4–Cy®5.5-PE fluorescence
0
0 102 103 104 105
SYTOX® Red fluorescence
B
B
CD3–Alexa Fluor® 488 fluorescence
105
104
treated and untreated human peripheral blood leukocytes was stained with
Alexa Fluor 488 dye–conjugated anti–human CD3 antibody, R-PE–conjugated
®
anti–human CD8 antibody, and 5 nM SYTOX Red Dead Cell Stain (Cat. No.
Cell analysis
®
S34859) before analysis by flow cytometry using 488 nm and 635 nm excitation.
(A) Histogram showing distribution of two cell populations, dead cells that
exhibit significant SYTOX Red fluorescence signal, and live cells, which do not.
®
(B) Dual parameter plot of CD8 and CD3 staining after gating on live cells.
new DNA synthesis (Click-iT Plus EdU labeling) (Table 11). For more information and more products, go to
®
lifetechnologies.com/flow-cellproliferation
• Superior accuracy compared to BrdU assays, with minimal variation (low CV values)
• Streamlined five-step protocol
• Multiplexable with GFP, mCherry, APC, PerCP, PE, and other fluorophores
The growth of cells within a population can be indirectly observed by measuring modified nucleoside
incorporation into newly synthesized DNA. EdU (5-ethynyl-2´-deoxyuridine) is a nucleoside analog that is
incorporated into DNA during synthesis. The Click-iT Plus EdU Flow Cytometry Assay Kits allow detection of ®
EdU (which contains an alkyne) by a copper-catalyzed reaction that produces a stable covalent bond between the
alkyne and a fluorescent dye–labeled picolyl azide. The small size of the picolyl azide detection reagents means
that the fluorescent label has efficient access to the intact DNA without the need for harsh cell treatment.
In the past, DNA synthesis was measured by incorporating the nucleoside analog bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU)
into DNA, followed by detection with an anti-BrdU antibody. Although useful in its time, that method requires
DNA denaturation (using acid, heat, or DNase) to expose the BrdU to the antibody—a step that can adversely
affect sample quality. The Click-iT Plus EdU Flow Cytometry Assay eliminates the need to denature DNA, thus
®
simplifying the assay considerably yet generating comparable results (Figure 23). Click-iT Plus EdU labeling is ®
The Click-iT Plus kits can be used with fluorescent proteins, because the Click-iT Plus reaction uses a modified
® ®
azide in place of the azide used in the original Click-iT reaction. As a result of the modification, the concentration ®
of free copper in the sample is significantly lower and fluorescence signals from fluorescent proteins (e.g., R-PE,
R-PE tandem dyes, and GFP) are not quenched. The speed and accuracy of the Click-iT Plus EdU reaction is ®
comparable to that of the original Click-iT EdU reaction. See the product list on page 30 for available kits.
®
A 200 200
200
B 900 900
900 C
Alexa Fluor® 488 fluorescence
fluorescence
Alexa Fluor® 488 fluorescence
800 800
800 106 6 6
1010
700 700
700
Click-iT® EdU plus
150 150
150
Number of cells
Number of cells
Number of cells
Number of cells
Number of cells
Number of cells
600 600
600 105 5 5
1010
EdU
500 500
500
Fluor® 488
100 100
100
400 400
400 104 4 4
1010
Alexa Click-iT
300 300
300
Cell analysis
100 100
100
0 0 0 0 0 0 102 1010
2 2
101 10101 12
10 2 23
1010
10 3 34
1010
10 4 45
1010
10 5 56
1010
10 6 6
1010 0.0 0.00.0 0.5 0.50.5 1.0 1.01.0 1.5 1.51.5 2.0 2.02.0 0.0 0.00.0 0.5 0.50.5 1.0 1.01.0 1.5 1.51.5 2.0 2.02.0
Click-iT
Click-iT
Click-iT
®
EdU® EdU
plus
®
EdUAlexa
plus
plusAlexa
Fluor
AlexaFluor
®
Fluor
488® fluorescence
488
®
488fluorescence
fluorescence FxCycle
FxCycle
FxCycle
™
Violet
™™
Violet
fluorescence
Violetfluorescence
fluorescence
(x106(x10
) (x10) )
6 6
FxCycle
FxCycle
FxCycle
™
Violet
™™
Violet
fluorescence
Violetfluorescence
fluorescence
(x106(x10
) (x10) )
6 6
Figure 23. Cell proliferation analysis using the Click-iT Plus EdU Alexa Fluor 488 Flow Cytometry Assay Kit and FxCycle Violet Stain. Jurkat cells were treated
® ® ™
with 10 µM EdU for one hour and stained with Alexa Fluor 488 picolyl azide, according to the Click-iT Plus EdU Alexa Fluor 488 Flow Cytometry Assay Kit’s
® ® ®
protocol (Cat. No. C10632), followed by staining with FxCycle Violet Stain (Cat. No. F10347). Cells were then analyzed by flow cytometry using either 488 nm
™
excitation (for Click-iT EdU Alexa Fluor 488 dye) or 405 nm excitation (for FxCycle Violet stain). (A) Histogram demonstrating clear separation of cells in S phase
® ® ™
(DNA synthesis, including EdU incorporation) and cells in either G2/M or G0/G1. (B) Histogram showing DNA content distribution, with G0/G1 and G2/M phase
peaks separated by the S phase distribution using FxCycle Violet stain. (C) Dual parameter Click-iT Plus EdU and FxCycle plot shows co-positive cells that
™ ® ™
The CellTrace family of dyes comprises CellTrace CFSE dye (Cat. No. C34554), CellTrace Violet dye (Cat. No.
™ ™ ™
C34557), and CellTrace Far Red dye (Cat. No. C34564), all of which spontaneously and irreversibly couple to
™
cellular proteins by reaction with lysine side chains and other available amines. When cells divide, the CellTrace ™
dye labeling is distributed equally between the daughter cells, and each successive generation in a population of
proliferating cells is marked by a halving of cellular fluorescence intensity. Eight to ten successive generations
have been identified with both CellTrace CFSE and CellTrace Violet dye (Figure 24). All of the CellTrace dyes
™ ™ ™
can be used in combination with other cell function probes or markers. Because CellTrace Violet and CellTrace ™ ™
Far Red use lasers and detection channels different from those used for green fluorescence, multiplexing with
GFP, fluorescein, or other green-fluorescent probes is possible.
A B C
100 100
4000
80 80
3000
Cell count
Cell count
Cell count
60 60
2000
40 40
1000 20 20
0 0 0
102 103 104 105 106 103 104 105 106 103 104 105 106
CellTrace™ Violet fluorescence CellTrace™ CFSE fluorescence CellTrace™ Far Red fluorescence
Cell analysis
Figure 24. Generational tracing using CellTrace reagents. (A) Cell proliferation was followed for 8 generations using the CellTrace Violet reagent. Human
™ ™
peripheral blood mononuclear cells were harvested and stained with CellTrace Violet reagent prior to stimulation with mouse anti-human CD3 (Cat. No.
™
MHCD0300) and interleukin-2 (Cat. No. PHC0027) for 7 days. The discrete peaks in this histogram represent successive generations of live, CD4 positive cells. The
unstimulated parent generation is indicated in red. (B) and (C) Cell proliferation was followed for 7 generations using the CellTrace CFSE (B) and CellTrace Far ™ ™
Red (C) reagents. Human T lymphocytes were harvested and stained with reagent prior to stimulation with anti-human CD3 (Cat. No. MHCD0300) for 5 days. The
discrete peaks in these histograms represent successive generations of live, SYTOX Green (Cat. No. S34860) negative cells. The unstimulated parent generation
®
is indicated in blue (CellTrace CFSE) or purple (CellTrace Far Red). All analyses were performed using an Attune Acoustic Focusing Cytometer with 405 nm
™ ™ ®
excitation and a 450/40 nm bandpass emission filter for CellTrace Violet detection; with 488 nm excitation and a 530/30 nm bandpass emission filter for CellTrace
™ ™
CFSE detection; and with 638 nm excitation and a 660/20 nm bandpass emission filter for CellTrace Far Red detection. ™
Number of cells
104 1,500
polyploidy. Molecular Probes fluorescent dyes allow accurate cell cycle analysis in either
®
Dead
live or fixed cell populations (Table 12). For more information and to see more products, 1,000
go to lifetechnologies.com/flow-cellcycle 103
500
102
Vybrant DyeCycle Stains
® ™
Live
0
0 50 100 150 200 250 0
• Accurate cell cycle analysis in living cells Vybrant DyeCycle Green fluorescence
® ™
Vyb
• Low cytotoxicity for cell sorting and additional live cell
A
experiments B
105
2,000
Number of cells
• Ability to sort based on phase of cell cycle 104
Dead
1,500
• Ability to identify stem cell side populations using the violet laser 1,000
103
500
Vybrant DyeCycle stains offer the ability to stain for DNA profiling
® ™
10 in live cells, 2
with options for 405, 488, 532, or 633 nm excitation. The dyes are generally used Live
in 0
0 50 100 150 200 250
combination with a dead cell stain (Figure 25) to exclude dead cells from the analysis, but
0 50 100 150 200 250
then cultured or assessed with functional assays after determining their cell cycle stage. Figure 25. Viable-cell gating with Vybrant DyeCycle ® ™
See the product list on page 30 for the available reagents. stains. Jurkat cells from an overgrown culture
were stained with Vybrant DyeCycle Green Stain ® ™
FxCycle Stains
™
Cell Stain (Cat. No. S34857) and analyzed by flow
cytometry using 488 nm and 405 nm excitation. The
• Allows increased flexibility for multicolor cell cycle studies
histogram (B) was gated on live cells (A) and shows
• Requires little or no compensation with 488 nm excitable dyes DNA content distribution in live cells: G0/G1 and
G2/M phase peaks are separated by the S phase
• Results in tight CV values for more accurate analysis distribution. Inclusion of the dead cells would have
produced aberrant results.
Cell cycle analysis with FxCycle Violet Stain (Cat. No. F10347), FxCycle PI/RNase
™ ™
Staining Solution (Cat. No. F10797), or FxCycle Far Red Stain (Cat. No. F10348) allows
™
easy multiplexing with other cellular assays, such as those measuring cell proliferation
(Figure 23, page 22), immunophenotype, apoptosis, or viability, by freeing up other
lasers and detection channels. The FxCycle stains, intended for cells that are fixed and
™
SYTOX® AADvanced™
SYTOX® AADvanced™
by compaction of the nuclear chromatin, shrinkage of the
cytoplasm, and production of membrane-bound apoptotic 104 104
studying apoptosis. Below we describe several methods and –103 –102 103 105 105 –103 –102 103 105
Molecular Probes products for assessing apoptosis (Table 13). CellEvent Caspase-3/7 Green fluorescence CellEvent® Caspase-3/7 Green fl
®
®
N N
105
105
SYTOX® AADvanced™
SYTOX® AADvanced™
CellEvent Caspase-3/7 Green
® 104 104
Caspase-3/7 Green Flow Cytometry Assay Kit. Jurkat cells (human T cell
leukemia) were treated with (A) DMSO or (B) 10 µM camptothecin for 3 hours
Caspases are a family of enzymes that play key roles in initiating before labeling with the CellEvent Caspase-3/7 Green Flow Cytometry Assay
®
and effecting apoptosis, and activation of caspase enzymes is a Kit (Cat. No. C10427). Stained samples were analyzed on the Attune Acoustic ®
distinctive feature of the early stages of apoptosis. We provide Focusing Cytometer equipped with a 488 nm laser, and fluorescence emission
was collected using a 530/30 nm bandpass filter for the CellEvent reagent and ®
the kit). Note that treated cells have a higher percentage of apoptotic cells
No. C10427), which detects caspase activity with a substrate that, 7.5 pt than the basal level of apoptosis seen in the control cells (A). A, apoptotic
after being cleaved by caspase-3 or caspase-7, binds to DNA and cells; N, necrotic cells; V, viable cells.
becomes brightly fluorescent (Figure 26).
Cell analysis
Flow Cytometry Assay Kit
V V
Another hallmark of apoptosis is the translocation of phosphatidylserine (PS) from 1
A
1
10 10
the cytoplasmic surface of cell membranes, where it normally resides, to the external
surface of cells. Once this translocation has occurred in apoptotic cells, the PS can be
detected by the binding of fluorescently labeled annexin V, a PS-binding protein. We 100
100 101 102 103 104
100
100
offer an array of fluorescent conjugates of annexin V, including conjugates of Molecular Alexa Fluor® 488 fluorescence
Probes bright and photostable Alexa Fluor dyes (Figure 27). Additionally, we have flow
® ®
cytometry–optimized kits that combine some of our other viability and cell function
4
10
B 104
Three of those kits and several annexin V fluorescent conjugates10 are featured in the 3
103
product list on page 31. To find all of the available apoptosis kits, go to
lifetechnologies.com/flow-annexin 10 2
102
V V
A A
for the study of mitochondrial membrane potential. JC-1 exhibits potential-dependent & Propidium Iodide (Cat. No. V13245) and analyzed
by flow cytometry. Note that the camptothecin-
accumulation in mitochondria, indicated by a fluorescence emission shift from green treated cells have a significantly higher percentage
(~529 nm) to red (~590 nm), due to concentration-dependent formation of red-fluorescent of apoptotic cells (labeled “A”) than the basal level
J-aggregates (Figure 28). Consequently, mitochondrial depolarization is indicated by a of apoptosis seen in the control cells. V, viable
decrease in the red-to-green fluorescence intensity ratio, which is dependent only on cells; D, dead cells.
the membrane potential and not on other factors such as mitochondrial size, shape,
or density, which may influence single-component fluorescence measurements. Use
of fluorescence ratio detection therefore allows researchers to make comparative
measurements of membrane potential and to determine the percentage of cells within
a population that respond to an applied stimulus.
A Untreated B Treated
Cell analysis
- BL-3
JC-1 red fluorescence - BL-3
red fluorescence
red fluorescence
JC-1fluorescence
JC-1JC-1
JC-1 red
JC-1 green
JC-1
JC-1 fluorescence
green
green - BL1-H
fluorescence
fluorescence - BL1-H JC-1
JC-1 JC-1
green green fluorescence
fluorescence
green - BL1-H
fluorescence - BL1-H
Figure 28. Jurkat cells stained with 2 µM JC-1. Cells were stained using reagents in the MitoProbe JC-1 ™
Assay Kit (Cat. No. M34152) for 20 minutes at 37°C and 5% CO2, washed with PBS, and analyzed on the
Attune Acoustic Cytometer using 488 nm excitation with 530/30 nm bandpass and >640 nm longpass
®
emission filters. Untreated cultured cells (A) are shown compared to treated cells (B), which were induced
to undergo apoptosis with 10 µM camptothecin for 5 hours at 37°C.
The Violet Ratiometric Membrane Asymmetry Probe/Dead Cell Apoptosis Kit (Cat. No. A35137) provides
an easy, efficient method for the detection of apoptosis with dead-cell discrimination using a violet laser
flow cytometer (Figure 29). The Violet Ratiometric Membrane Asymmetry Probe detects the membrane
asymmetry changes during apoptosis. It works well on adherent and suspension cells, and correlates with
other indicators of apoptosis, such as caspase detection and changes in mitochondrial membrane potential.
The dye exhibits an excited-state intramolecular proton transfer reaction resulting in dual fluorescence,
with two emission bands corresponding to 530 nm and 585 nm, producing a two-color ratiometric response
to variations in surface charge. The F2N12S probe is combined with SYTOX AADvanced dead cell stain, ® ™
which is capable of passing through the cell membrane only in late apoptotic or necrotic cells, allowing
discrimination from early apoptotic cells.
Unlike annexin-based assays, this assay does not require special buffers or wash steps, and it is less
susceptible to the cell membrane damage commonly found during the physical or chemical removal steps
when assaying adherent cells, therefore providing better data quality.
262,144 262,144
A B
F2N12S green fluorescence
196,608 196,608
A+D A+D
131,072 131,072
65,536 65,536
L L
0 0
0 65,536 131,072 196,608 262,144 0 65,536 131,072 196,608 262,144
105
C D
105
D D
104
10 4
103 L 103
A L
Cell analysis
A
102 102
101 101
0 1,250 2,500 3,750 5,000 0 1,250 2,500 3,750 5,000
F2N12S ratio 585 nm/530 nm F2N12S ratio 585 nm/530 nm
fluorescence x 1,000 fluorescence x 1,000
Figure 29. Violet ratiometric membrane asymmetry probe for apoptosis detection. Jurkat cells (T cell leukemia, human) were
treated with 10 µM camptothecin for 4 hours, panels (B) and (D), or left untreated as a control, panels (A) and (C). Samples were
analyzed on a flow cytometer with 405 nm excitation using 585 nm and 530 nm bandpass filters for F2N12S, and 488 nm excitation
for SYTOX AADvanced dead cell stain using a 695 nm bandpass filter. Live cells can be discriminated from apoptotic and dead cells
® ™
by the relative intensities of the two emission bands from F2N12S, (A) and (B). In panels (C) and (D), SYTOX AADvanced dead cell ® ™
stain fluorescence is plotted against a derived ratio parameter from the two emission bands (585/530 nm) of F2N12S. A = apoptotic
cells, L = live cells, D = dead cells.
• Fluorogenic probe that is oxidized to a fluorescent form in the presence of reactive oxygen species (ROS)
• Minimal overlap with fluorophores excited by other laser lines, allowing easy multiplexing
• Cells can be stained in complete media or other appropriate buffer; no need for serum-free media
Generation of ROS is inevitable for aerobic organisms and, in healthy cells, occurs at a controlled rate. Under
conditions of oxidative stress, ROS production is dramatically increased, resulting in subsequent alteration of
membrane lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids. Oxidative damage of these biomolecules is associated with aging,
as well as with a variety of pathological events, including atherosclerosis, carcinogenesis, ischemia-reperfusion
injury, and neurodegenerative disorders.
CellROX reagents are fluorogenic probes for measuring generalized oxidative stress in cells, using conventional
®
fluorescence microscopy, high content screening, microplate fluorometry, or flow cytometry (Figure 30). In a
reduced state, the dyes are nonfluorescent, but upon oxidation, they fluoresce brightly. Molecular Probes kits ®
for flow cytometry include CellROX Green Flow Cytometry Assay Kit (Cat. No. C10492), CellROX Orange Flow
® ®
Cytometry Assay Kit (Cat. No. C10493), and CellROX Deep Red Flow Cytometry Assay Kit (Cat. No. C10491). For ®
A B C
105 105
SYTOX® Blue fluorescence
104 104
103 103
102 102
0 0
0 102 103 104 105 0 102 103 104 105 0 102 103 104 105
CellROX® Deep Red fluorescence CellROX® Deep Red fluorescence CellROX® Deep Red fluorescence
Figure 30. ROS detection by flow cytometry. (A) ROS levels detected by the CellROX Deep Red Reagent (provided in the CellROX Deep ® ®
Red Flow Cytometry Assay Kit, (Cat. No. C10491) are decreased in oxidant-treated Jurkat cells with pretreatment of cultures using
N-acetylcysteine (NAC). The cells treated with the oxidant tert-butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) (red) show increased staining with the
CellROX Deep Red Reagent compared with cells pretreated with NAC before TBHP treatment (blue) and with untreated control cells
®
(green). (B, C) CellROX Deep Red Reagent can be used with SYTOX Blue Dead Cell Stain to differentiate live stressed cells from dead
® ®
cells. Jurkat cells were treated with (B) PBS or (C) 200 µM TBHP for 30 minutes before labeling using the CellROX Deep Red Flow ®
Cytometry Assay Kit. Note that the treated cells (C) have a higher percentage of cells under oxidative stress than the basal level of ROS
observed in control cells (B).
Cell analysis
Proprietary, pH-sensitive Molecular Probes pHrodo dyes are almost nonfluorescent at neutral pH and
® ®
fluoresce brightly in acidic environments, making them ideal for use as pH indicators for a variety of
applications, including studying the processes of phagocytosis and endocytosis. The pHrodo Green E. coli ®
BioParticles Phagocytosis Kit (Cat. No. P35381) and the pHrodo Red E. coli BioParticles Phagocytosis Kit
® ® ®
(Cat. No. A10025; Figure 31) enable the detection of phagocytic activity in whole blood samples and live cell
lines by flow cytometry. The kits include all of the reagents required for assessing particle ingestion and red
blood cell lysis. Additionally, the pHrodo Phagocytosis Particle Labeling Kit (Cat. No. A10026) allows you
®
to label your own sample of bacteria with pHrodo Red dye. To find more information and products, go to
®
lifetechnologies.com/flow-phrodo
120
Number of cells counted
Negative
control
80
Phagocytosed
particles
40
0
100 101 102 103 104
pHrodo dye fluorescence (585 nm)
®
Figure 31. Flow cytometry analysis showing increased fluorescence of granulocytes treated with pHrodo Red BioParticles ® ®
conjugates. A whole blood sample was collected and treated with heparin, and two 100 µL aliquots were prepared. Both aliquots
were treated with pHrodo Red E. coli BioParticles conjugates (used in the pHrodo Red E. coli BioParticles Phagocytosis Kit
® ® ® ®
(Cat. No. A10025)) and vortexed. One sample was placed in a 37°C water bath, and the other sample (negative control) was placed
in an ice bath. After a 15 minute incubation, red blood cells were lysed with an ammonium chloride–based lysis buffer. The samples
were centrifuged for 5 minutes at 500 x g, washed once, and resuspended in Hank's Balanced Salt Solution. The samples were then
analyzed on a BD FACSCalibur cytometer using a 488 nm argon laser and 564–606 nm emission filter. The sample incubated at
™
37°C shows the increased fluorescence of the phagocytosed pHrodo Red BioParticles conjugates (red), in contrast to the negative
® ®
Cell analysis
Apoptosis 511/533
CellEvent Caspase-3/7 Green Flow
™
(CellEvent Green) ™ ‡
AADvanced dye) ™
495/519
Dead Cell Apoptosis Kit with Alexa Fluor 488 ® 50 assays V13241
Blue (Alexa Fluor 488 dye)
®
RUO
Annexin V & Propidium Iodide
535/617 (PI) 250 assays V13245
494/519
Dead Cell Apoptosis Kit with FITC annexin V &
Blue (FITC) RUO 50 assays V13242
Propidium Iodide
535/617 (PI)
405⁄530, 585
Violet Ratiometric Asymmetry Probe/Dead (F2N12S)
Violet/blue RUO 100 assays A35137
Cell Apoptosis Kit 546/647 ‡
545/565
Green (532 (CellROX Orange)
®
640/665
CellROX Deep Red Flow Cytometry
®
(CellROX Deep Red)
®
Cell analysis
(SYTOX Blue)® ‡
and sensitivity, in a modular design that can grow with you. With up to 4 lasers and
14 colors, the Attune NxT cytometer is designed to accommodate most experimental
®
For Research Use Only unless indicated. Not for use in diagnostic procedures. © 2014 Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. All rights reserved. All
trademarks are the property of Thermo Fisher Scientific and its subsidiaries unless otherwise specified. Cy is a registered trademark of GE Healthcare.
FACScan and FACSCalibur are trademarks or registered trademarks of Becton, Dickinson and Company. TransFix is a registered trademark of
® ™
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. FIX & PERM is a registered trademark of Nordic Immunological Laboratories. CO010599 0914
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