Bio-Rad Introduces TC20 Automated Cell Counter

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. today announced the launch of its TC20™ automated cell counter, the next generation of the company’s TC10™ automated cell counter that provides accurate and reliable counts of live mammalian cells in 30 seconds. The TC20 system’s improved lens and cell counting algorithm make it compatible with a broader range of cell sizes and types. This includes cells smaller than 10 microns and complex samples such as stem cells and primary cells derived from tissue or blood.

Stem cell research, toxicology studies, and flow cytometry all rely on an accurate and consistent number of input cells. Counting cells prior to cell culture or before starting processes and analytical techniques used in such work is extremely tedious if done manually with a hemocytometer. Manually counting cells is also subject to user bias, which can lead to variable results among researchers.

Many of the advanced features of the TC10 system, such as the auto-focus technology that provides highly reproducible cell counts with reduced user-to-user variability, remain in the TC20 system. The TC20 also has the ability to analyze cells across multiple focal planes, which eliminates live cell undercounting associated with single focal plane analysis. And unlike electrical impedance–based counters, researchers can view cells in real time to immediately confirm their total and live/dead cell counts.

Additional features new to the TC20 automated cell counter include:

• Cell size gates — enable accurate counting of such complex samples as primary cells, which are composed of multiple cell populations
• TC20 data analyzer — offers post–count analysis, such as histograms, and comparative analysis with multiple samples and reporting
• Automated data export — lets the user export count data to a USB flash drive to be analyzed using the TC20 data analyzer

Although the TC10 is no longer available, the counting slides, trypan blue dye, thermal printer, and verification kit developed for that system are compatible with the TC20 system.