FlowCam^® - Flow Imaging Microscopy Blog

Imagine being able to identify specific problems in a formulation simply by analyzing the particles and composition of protein aggregates present in a sample?  The delicate nature and limited stability of protein therapeutics means that virtually all protein formulations contain particles resulting from routine processes, stresses and varied aggregation sources. Monitoring and managing protein aggregates and other particulates in therapeutic formulations is essential to mitigating the risk of adverse responses that could result from these particles. 

Yokogawa Fluid Imaging partner, Axel Wilde of ANASYSTA, recently wrote an article discussing the acquisition of Fluid Imaging Technologies by Yokogawa, and how the FlowCam compliments Yokogawa's current product portfolio. Keep reading, or check out the article on Yokogawa's Life Innovation Blog.

Last week, The-Scientist.com introduced their new Research Products blog. Their very first post discusses the capabilities of the FlowCam Nano:

The FlowCam Aquatic Research Equipment & Travel Grant is back by popular demand for the 2021-22 academic year. This equipment grant provides an opportunity for one graduate student and up to two undergraduate faculty members to receive the use of a FlowCam for the semester of their choice.

Graduate applicants are eligible for a FlowCam 8000 (8100 or 8400) and undergraduate applicants are eligible for a FlowCam 5000.

Pictured here: Drs. Kerry Whittaker (left) and LeAnn Whitney (right) of Maine Maritime Academy (MMA), winners of the 2020 FlowCam Undergraduate Grant.

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.

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.

An interview with Steve Bowen, Director of Sales, Yokogawa Fluid Imaging Technologies

What is particle analysis?

Particle analysis involves taking a sample of a substance and analyzing the individual particles of the sample. The basic goal is to determine the constituents of a mixture and to differentiate between particles in the sample. Typical measurements of particles that are of interest include: particle size distribution, particle count, various measurements of particle shape, and particle concentration.

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.

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.

Characterization of subvisible particles in protein therapeutics has become an increasingly important means to ensure the development of safe, stable, and effective medicines.  Many analytical techniques are available to identify and prevent not only protein aggregation, but to fulfill regulatory requirements. The purpose of this study by Danny Chou, President and Founder of Compassion BioSolution, LLC is to compare different techniques and their ability to identify subvisible particles and what relationship exists between the number of particles and different stress conditions imposed upon the protein drug products.

Flow Imaging Microscopy has been widely implemented for the analysis of particles ranging in size from 1-10µm. Yet, in recent years the FDA has highlighted the need for better analytical tools to fully understand how different stress conditions can impact the stability of the formulation. While light obscuration and membrane microscopy have been the primary methods to conduct USP testing for particles between 10µm - 25µm, regulators are now moving towards expecting orthogonal analytical methods to characterize and provide quantitative data on particles in the 2µm - 10µm range as well.

FlowCam Nano offers the ability to image and analyze particles ranging from 30µm down to as small as 300 nm.