What is the future of electrical impedance spectroscopy in flow cytometry?

Abstract

More than 20 years ago, electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was proposed as a potential characterization method for flow cytometry. As the setup is comparably simple and the method is label-free, EIS has attracted considerable interest from the research community as a potential alternative to standard optical methods, such as fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS). However, until today, FACS remains by and large the laboratory standard with highly developed capabilities and broad use in research and clinical settings. Nevertheless, can EIS still provide a complement or alternative to FACS in specific applications? In this Perspective, we will give an overview of the current state of the art of EIS in terms of technologies and capabilities. We will then describe recent advances in EIS-based flow cytometry, compare the performance to that of FACS methods, and discuss potential prospects of EIS in flow cytometry.