Practical considerations for the selection and use of optical filters in flow cytometry

✍ Scribed by Keith A. Kelley; Joan L. McDowell

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1988
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 398 KB
• Volume: 9
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0196-4763
• DOI: 10.1002/cyto.990090402

✦ Synopsis

The selection of proper optical filters for various excitation and emission requirements is critical in flow cytometry. Problems which arise in the selection and utilization of optical filters, and the solutions to these problems, For most flow cytometer users, the optical filters initially supplied with the system are, at first, adequate for most applications. However, with the increasing availability of new excitation sources, new dyes and dye combinations, and multiparameter measurement and analysis capabilities, the selection of the proper optical filters for flow cytometry has become increasingly important and, at the same time, more complicated (7,9). Many users are unaware that the performance of filters changes with time and that it should be examined, both on the filter's receipt and during its lifetime.

Flow systems manufacturers supply filters for specific applications designed to meet most users' requirements. For dual-laser systems and multi-color measurements, filters must efficiently block high-intensity laser light at one or more excitation wavelengths, while passing as much low-intensity fluorescence emission as possible from stained cells (6-9).