[Description and performance of a flow cytometry apparatus: the EPICS].

This is a report on our experience with the EPICS C (Coultronics) cytometric flux apparatus, a screening cell analyzer, employing a laser ray (2 or 5 watts); we obtained good results to analyze immunologically-tagged mononuclear blood cells with or without prior separation: for rhythm, repeatability, and contamination. The EPICS C machine proved to be effective to study the cell cycle using lymphoblastic cells, epithelial cells and cells from a breast cancer. Several screening trials were carried out with fluorescent ball bearings of various sizes; the quality of screening (purity and yield) appear optimal at a speed ranging from 500 to 1,000 bearings per second, using three parameters: the logarithm of green fluorescence, the integral function of green fluorescence, the diffraction of light to small angles. Thus, if results obtained for this analysis are entirely satisfactory, the screening function remains limited because it is slow.