Clinical Case Studies COULTER® GEN•S™ System Enhanced VCS ...

monitors and reacts to variables such as the ambient temperature,
optimizing the instrument system to provide consistent reaction kinetics. This
is achieved using intelligent management of reagent reaction temperature,
exposure time, and reagent delivery volume which are controlled through
automatic system adjustments. The combination of this new application with
improved electronics provides a high quality data signal to the VCS probes
and to the analysis algorithms, resulting in cell populations that are in a
consistent location in multidimensional space.
The two examples demonstrate the benefits that the IntelliKinetics process
provides in terms of improved population separation. Plots 1 & 2 represent a
fresh blood sample with (Plot. 2) and without (Plot. 1) the use of reaction
control, Plots 3 & 4 repeat the experiment this time for a day old blood
sample. Plot 3 shows the scatterplot without the use of the IntelliKinetics
process, while Plot 4 has the reaction management added. (See Diagram 5)
AccuGate Software
List Mode data collected from the VCS probes is analyzed by the AccuGate
software. This new computer algorithm uses advanced contour gating to
identify and classify the WBC sub-populations in a tailored, sample specific
way. AccuGate software contains adaptive statistical tools that assist in
delineating overlapping populations, such as clusters of variant lymphocytes
and monocytes, that are difficult to distinguish using linear gating applications.
The algorithm is also capable of adapting to shifts in populations which
are often manifested when morphologic abnormalities are present.
The benefits of adaptive gating include new suspect flags and additional
“research only” parameters, increased precision and accuracy of results,
color enhancement of population density and cell category dataplots. White
cell differentials on the GEN•S System can be presented in multidimensional
formats; additionally an operator can hide or display any series of individual
cell populations within the display.
The six diagrams on the following page illustrate an example of white cell
differential analysis using AccuGate software. Although shown two
dimensionally, separation actually occurs in three dimensions, and we have
attempted to visualize how contour gating works using the bending line in the
DC (x-axis) vs. RLS (y-axis) two-dimensional views.