A light sheet based high throughput 3D-imaging flow cytometer for phytoplankton analysis.

This paper reports a light sheet fluorescence imaging flow cytometer for 3D sectioning of phytoplankton. The instrument developed has the inherent advantages of high cell counting throughput and high spatial resolution information derived from flow cytometry and light sheet microscopy. The throughput of the instrument is quantified by the sample volume flow rate of 0.5 μl/min with a spatial resolution as achieved by light sheet microscopy. Preliminary results from 3D morphology of the internal chlorophyll-a structure of two dinoflagellates species show promising application potentials of the method for phytoplankton taxonomy of selected species and species groups.