Education [MSc/MD/PhD neuroscience] Promotion of young researchers Flow cytometry Brain imaging [from cell to system] Proteomik,Genomik, Genetik Research area A: Mechanisms of damage Research Area B: Endogenous brain protection Research area C: Regeneration Research area D: Crosstalk between nervous and immune system Research area E: Developmental disturbances Research area F: Plasticity Disorders of network formation Neuroinflammation Cerebro-vascular diseases (CVD) Research unit for long-term outcome and behavioral analysis Research unit for long-term outcome and behavioral analysis NeuroCure Clinical Research Center

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    top


Flow cytometry

Inflammation has been shown to play an important role in the etiology and pathophysiology of a variety of neurological disorders. The most relevant neuroinflammatory disease is multiple sclerosis. Recent research, however, has unraveled a key role for inflam-matory processes in many other neurological disorders, such as stroke, epilepsy, and also neuro-degenerative disorders.

 

The Deutsches Rheuma-Forschungszentrum as well as the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology (MPIIB), both located on the Charité-Campus Mitte, provide jointly state-of-the-art tools and facilities to study inflammation. A Flow Cytometry Core Facility (FCCF) was founded in 2000 as a collaboration between the DRFZ, MPIIB, and the Charité. The facility consists of three rooms (including S2 facilities) in the DRFZ and is headed by a qualified engineer. Flow cytometry is an analytical tool for rapidly quantifying mulitple chemical and physical properties of individual cells. This tool can be divided into cell analysis and cell sorting.

 

For cell analysis at the FCCF, the FACSCalibur ® and LSR ® benchtop flow cytometers are used. These machines are equipped with 2 or 3 lasers (325 nm, 488 nm, 630 nm) and up to 6 fluorescence parameters plus forward light scatter and side light scatter. For cell sorting, a FACSVantage ® equipped with 488 nm, 630 nm, and 350 nm lasers and up to 5 fluorescence parameters is available. The FACSVantage ® is also equipped with ACDU ® allowing to setup the cytometer to deposit an accurately defined number of events into plates or slides. The second cell sorter is a FACSVantage SE ® high-speed sorter with a DIVA ® upgrade. This will give us the possibility to sort a specified number of particles from multiple parameters into a variety of devices, including tubes, plates, and slides. Simultaneous sorting into four tubes is also feasible. Additionally to the 488 nm, 630 nm, and 350 nm lasers, this cell sorter has a 530 nm laser enabling detection of 10 parameters simultaneously.

 

The following facilities are available to NeuroCure scientists

Available infrastructure:

  • 5 FACS Calibur (2 laser, 6 parameter)
  • 1 LSR (3 laser, 7 parameter)
  • 1 FACSSort (1 laser, 5 parameter)
  • 1 FACSVantage (2 laser, 7 parameter)
  • 1 FACSVantage SE with Turbosort and DIVA upgrade (3 laser, 10 parameter)
  • 1 Data server 80GB to save cytometry-derived data