FlowCam^® - Flow Imaging Microscopy Blog

Researchers Karnan et al. have recently published the results of a study performed from 2013-14 in Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. Their paper, titled "Implications of micro-plankton and micro-detritus on the food web in the largest monsoonal estuary along the west coast of India" tested the hypothesis that flooding would increase the quantity of available detritus in the Kochi Backwaters (KBW). 

Back by popular demand, the FlowCam Student Equipment Grant program has a new category specifically for undergraduate institutions. The recipients of this inaugural undergraduate grant were Drs. Kerry Whittaker, LeAnn Whitney, and Steven Baer of the Corning School of Ocean Studies at Maine Maritime Academy (MMA), a small college of about 950 students located in Castine, ME.

The FlowCam has been used in marine and freshwater applications since its invention in 1999. Since then, it has been found to be valuable across many industries to evaluate microparticles of importance in medicine, manufacturing, and environmental disciplines. Rarely do we see these applications cross paths - where man-made particles are being analyzed in marine and freshwater environments. One example of this intersection is the study of microplastics, and the problems they cause for our oceans and marine life. 

Have you ever wondered how our technical customer support team performs quality control checks during services and before shipping new instruments? Here's one example of the process our team uses to check for accuracy on the FlowCam Cyano.

Pictured here: Enterprise Pond at YFT headquarters in Scarborough, Maine. The source of the sample used in this demonstration.

Determining whether algal cells are alive or dead is useful for a variety of applications including, but not limited to: wastewater analysis, algaecide testing, mesocosm experiments, and ballast water monitoring. Viability staining is a common approach used in flow cytometry to evaluate the relative abundance of live and dead cells in a sample. The FlowCam 8400, equipped with a laser, digital camera, and 2 channels of fluorescence detection, can be paired with various fluorescent stains to assess the viability of algal cells. Here we will describe how to pair an example of one such stain, fluorescein diacetate (FDA), with the FlowCam 8400 equipped with a 488nm blue laser.

Tessa Rock, a junior at the University of New England (UNE), will be presenting her undergraduate FlowCam research at the New England Estuarine Research Society (NEERS) virtual fall meeting on Wednesday, October 21 as part of a session titled “Particles, Plants and Plastic”.

After fielding many requests from FlowCam users, we are happy to announce that we have made available expanded taxonomic libraries. These example libraries illustrate some common genera found in Casco Bay (in the Gulf of Maine) and show examples of how users may organize libraries for their own unique area. The 42 libraries cover 37 different taxa.

A long-term study undertaken by Chaffin et al. at Ohio State University monitored nutrient levels and phytoplankton growth in the Lake Erie central basin from 2014 until 2017. The purpose of the study was to determine the primary limiting nutrient determining phytoplankton growth, and determine if multiple limiting nutrients existed during this time period. The FlowCam was used to image and analyze phytoplankton species and to estimate biomass and biovolume of the species under consideration.

We are very happy to announce the recipient of this year’s Aquatic FlowCam Research Equipment and Travel grant for undergraduate institutions. This grant provides students and professors with access to a FlowCam at their lab for the fall semester, as well as financial support to present their work involving the FlowCam at a North American conference (remotely, if needed).

Today we are excited to announce the recipient of this year’s Aquatic FlowCam Research Equipment and Travel grant for graduate students. This grant provides students and professors with access to a FlowCam at their lab for the fall semester, as well as financial support to present their work involving the FlowCam at a North American conference (remotely, if needed).