Bio-Rad TC20™ Automated Cell Counter - Manual (Page 9)

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Introduction
Introduction
The Bio-Rad TC20 ™ automated cell counter is a benchtop instrument that counts
mammalian cells in one simple step, initiating auto-counts immediately upon slide
insertion. The innovative autofocus technology and sophisticated digital image
analysis algorithm produce accurate cell counts for most samples in less than
30 seconds. The TC20 cell counter rapidly provides a total cell count with or without
trypan blue staining and assesses cell viability via trypan blue exclusion. Getting all
the data you need about your cell cultures is fast and easy; the TC20 cell counter and
disposable counting slides eliminate the need for tedious setup, cleaning, or maintenance.
The TC20 cell counter provides accurate and reproducible cell counts for suspended
cells that have been grown as adherent or suspension cells at concentrations within the
5 × 10 4 to 1 × 10 7 cells/ml range and for cells within the 6–50 μm cell diameter range.
Only 10 μl of cell suspension is required for the cell count. The cell counter detects the
presence of trypan blue in the sample with no user input required and automatically
accounts for the 1:1 (trypan blue:cells) dilution factor. The TC20 cell counter can count
single or mixed cell population samples. For samples with multiple cell populations the
user can define the cell population of interest by adjusting the position of cell size gates.
An image of the counted cells can be viewed onscreen and downloaded onto a USB
flash drive immediately after the count. The TC20 cell counter can store results from
100 counts. Count results can be exported onto a USB flash drive and viewed in
Microsoft Excel. Each sample can be given a unique name and if the data autosave
function is enabled, the JPEG image from the current count is automatically saved onto
the inserted USB flash drive. Each image contains a metatag with the cell count data
and can be further analyzed using the TC20 Data Analyzer downloadable from
www.bio-rad.com/tc20.
The TC20 cell counter has a dilution calculator to derive cell resuspension volumes
required to achieve the cell concentration needed for the next experiment. A histogram
of cell diameter distribution in the sample can be viewed after the cell count.
Instrument Overview
The front panel of the TC20 automated cell counter (Figure 1) includes:
• User interface — a color digital screen and four keys for navigating the
software
• Slide port — used to insert the cell counting slide
The side (right) panel of the TC10 automated cell counter (Figure 1) includes:
• USB port A (top port) — for connecting thermal printer or USB flash drive
• USB port B (bottom port) — for connecting thermal printer; the USB port B
cannot be used for the USB flash drive
• Power switch — for turning the instrument on and off
The rear panel of the TC20 automated cell counter includes:
• Power inlet — used to connect the cell counter to an electrical outlet via the
supplied power cord (select the appropriate plug adaptor for your region)