Evaluation of bactericidal activity of human biological fluids by flow cytofluorimetry

Abstract

The ability of biological fluids to kill microbes is an important feature of the human immune system. Following incubation of fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled Staphylococcus aureus with biological specimens and subsequent staining with propidium iodide, the proportions of killed bacteria were estimated by flow cytometry. FACScan is a simple, quick and reliable method to evaluate bactericidal activity of biological fluids. The results of the cytometric method correlated well with the results of the classic microbiological method. The proposed method is highly informative for evaluating bactericidal activity of sera in immunocompromised patients. © 2007 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.