Flow Imaging Microscopy Blog

Cardiovascular implants, such as drug coated balloons or drug eluting stents used to treat coronary artery disease are subject to rigorous testing for safety. The assessment of particles released from such devices is essential in the approval of these types of coated medical devices because particles released into the blood stream can increase the risk of emboli. In this study the FlowCam was used to count and analyze particles collected during simulated tests, and these results were compared to light obscuration particle counting.
Pictured at right, FlowCam images with different threshold values.

As part of our 20^th anniversary celebration, all 30 Fluid Imaging employees traveled together to hand-deliver two new FlowCam instruments to the lab where the FlowCam was invented, Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences (BLOS) in East Boothbay, Maine.

Last week we welcomed our Australian Technical Services Director, Mark Williams from Kenelec Scientific, for advanced FlowCam training.

For more than 50 years, Kenelec Scientific has been one of Australia’s leading scientific and environmental technology companies. Based in Melbourne, with distributors located throughout Australia, they are recognized as innovative industry leaders in the supply of the latest generation technologies at competitive prices.

Will you be at the National Marine Educators Association Conference in Durham, NH next week? Stop by our booth in the Strafford Room to see our new FlowCam 5000 in action!  Bring a sample to be analyzed in the booth and see the streamlined efficiency of our new instrument.

Ever wondered how a FlowCam works, or how it compares to a traditional microscope? Read further to learn about the basic mechanics that all of our instruments use.

On Friday our team welcomed a visit from Professor Natasha Barteneva from Nazarbayev University in Astana, Kazakhstan. Several years ago, Dr. Barteneva approached us with interest in setting up a Flow Cytometry laboratory for Nazarbayev University. With her unique position as a research scientist at Harvard University and Faculty Professor at Nazarbayev, she facilitated a grant for their university.  The rest, as we say, is FlowCam history.

In microscope systems, it's the numerical aperture (NA) and the wavelength of the light that determine the minimum distance that two particles can be resolved. Clear images, accurate sizing, and consistent categorization all depend on your NA setting.

Flow Imaging Microscopy has revolutionized particle analysis by offering qualitative, morphological analysis in addition to quantitative analysis (count and size). 

A class of engineered proteins called elastin-like polymers (ELP) have shown promise for advanced drug delivery applications. In order to fully realize their potential however, they need to be rigorously characterized  to determine how they behave in different environments. The FlowCam is ideally suited to help with the characterization process.

How do you analyze algae populations? Algae analysis is simplified using the FlowCam^®'s image analysis software VisualSpreadsheet^®. While manual identification may still be required for taxonomic purposes, algae identification and population analysis can be achieved with little effort using this system.