Ralph L. McDade

Rapid, economical testing in the clinical laboratory: A new flow cytometry-based multiplex system

Summary Luminex Corp. has developed a multiplex assay system (FlowMetrix) that incorporates the most advanced digital signal processing technology into an established assay platform, enhancing its speed, economy, sensitivity, precision, and throughput. Microsphere-based assays are now multiplexed assays, capable of performing up to 64 discrete tests in a single tube from the same sample at the same time. The flow cytometer becomes an absolute measurement instrument, acquiring and analyzing the data generated by thousands of microspheres every second, and reporting the values in real time. With applications in routine immunoassay and advanced molecular diagnostics, this system should provide significant benefit to the clinical laboratory today and in the future.