The Pediatric/Winship Flow Cytometry Core provides cytometry services for the analysis and sorting of cells as well as expert consultation for experimental design and planning. The Flow Cytometry Core offers access to several analytical flow cytometers (9), an imaging cytometer as well as high-speed cell sorters (2). Training and technical expertise is available to enable our users to improve the quality and scope of their research. Contact Aaron Rae for any questions. The Flow Cytometry Core also offers immunological-based assay services, please contact core director David Archer for questions. Our welcome document provides all of the information you need to access and use the core.
Online Bookings and PPMS Registration
Training Request
Cell Sorting Request
What is Flow Cytometry?
How does a Flow Cytometer Work?
The core is located in E-362 in the Heath Science Research Building and is accessible to researchers 24/7 by keycard, and instruments can be booked via the PPMS website. There are no food or drinks permitted in the Flow Core.
Our facility is also located in Winship Building C, Room C-5027, Winship Building B, Room B3202 and is accessible to researchers from 7am-7pm Mon to Fri by keycard. Instruments can be booked via the PPMS link above.
To request access to Building B&C please submit the following form: Winship Access Request
The Flow Cytometry Core offers access to several analytical flow cytometers and Luminex as well as high-speed cell sorting. We also offer training as well as expert help to enable our users to improve the quality and scope of their research.
The facility provides the following list of services:
The core supports a wide range of applications, please contact a member of staff for further information:
- Aaron Rae, Core Director
- Prasanthi Chappa, Flow Cytometry Technologist
- Dr Igor Albizua-Santin, Flow Cytometry Technologist
- Dr Inna Iaabel Ruiz, Flow Cytometry Technologist
- Dr David Archer, Scientific Director
Request Assistance: Staff Assistance Request Form
Meet the Lab Login: flowuser Password: facs123
To Register for an account in the Pediatrics/Winship Flow Cytometry Core please click here.
Bookings can be made online for the analyzers through PPMS. Once users have been trained they will be given access to book the equipment online. The calendars are located at: https://ppms.us/emory/?ECFCC
PLEASE NOTE: If you move labs or leave Emory please let the Flow Core know as soon as possible so we can update your record.
Projects
If you have mulitple Projects or SPEEDTYPES that you wish to bill your flow charges to you can request that separate projects be created. This allows for organization of hours booked per project for billing purposes. Please visit: PPMS Project Request
Emory + Pediatrics/Winship Flow Cytometry Core Billing Policy
Pricing (Effective February 1, 2024)
- Cell Sorting, ARIA II - $145/hr
- Imagestream - $51/hr
- iQUE - $52/hr
- Analyzers, Auroras, Symphony & Cytoflex - $40/hr
- Analyzer Training* $300 per session (From 1st August, 2021)
- Sample Processing/Data Analysis/Service Consultation - $60/hr
- Offline Analysis Workstations - $0/hr
* Training Includes a credit for each individual of $300 to be used within in 6 months.
Pediatric researchers are eligible for subsidized rates on selected services. Winship members doing cancer projects are eligible for subsidized rates. Please contact David Archer to determine eligibility. An additional fee will be charged for service consultation, please contact David Archer for details.
In order to keep the Pediatrics/Winship Flow Cytometry Core instruments in good working order for all users, detailed use instructions and cleaning procedures are included in the instrument standard operating procedures (SOP). When a user makes deviations from the SOP that result in instrument downtime or inhibits the next user from typical use, the user at fault may be charged to facilitate necessary repairs. This may include, but is not limited to, part replacement and technician repair/troubleshoot time. If you have questions about how to properly use or maintain the instrument to keep it in proper working order, please do not hesitate to ask Aaron Rae or Prasanthi Chappa. If you find an instrument to be malfunctioning or not working at its best, please immediately report the issue, this will prevent further damage and properly identify the problem.
Cancellation Policy
Any equipment cancellations made 24 hours or more in advance to the booking will be honored and no charges will be assessed to the user. Any equipment cancellations made LESS THAN 24 hours in advance to the booking will be charged in full to the investigator’s discretionary (i.e. non-sponsored) account. For additional details on the cancellation policy, please see the Flow Cytometry Core Billing Practices Subsidies and Cancelation Policies (PDF).
Subsidy Policy
Generous subsidies are offered for those investigators who are actively engaging in child health-related or for Winship Cancer Institute members doing cancer-related projects research. Subsidies will only be applied to the amount of time actually used on the machine, rather than the time booked. The investigator will be responsible for paying the full rate for any time that was booked and not used. For additional details on the subsidy policy, please see the Flow Cytometry Core Billing Practices Subsidies and Cancelation Policies (PDF).
Flow Cytometry Core Assisted Sorting Policy
Users are expected to turn up at their scheduled time, if you are running late please inform the member of staff you have booked with. Failure to inform a member of staff no later than 30 minutes after the scheduled booking time will result in an automatic cancellation of the booking and the user being charged the full amount*.
*exteunating circumstances permitted at the discretion of the Technical Director.
Flow Cytometry Core Data Retention Policy
BSL2 safety practices should be employed in the facility. Primary human cells or cells exposed to recombinant virus should be fixed before analysis on the instruments.
All users are required to fill out the Flow Cytometry Facility Cell Sorting Form prior to their sort being performed.
As of the May 1, 2012 all users that are requesting cell sorting are required to download the Cell Sorting Guidelines from the EHSO. A Risk Assessment must be provided to the Flow Cytometry Facility before any sorting can be performed, a template is provided within the EHSO guidelines.
The Flow Cytometry Core is generously supported by Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Winship Cancer Institute, and Emory University. When presenting or publishing work completed using the core, please include "Pediatric/Winship Flow Cytometry Core (RRID: SCR_022324)" in the acknowledgments.
To determine if you should use "Children's Healthcare of Atlanta" in your author affiliations, please see guidelines here.
For Winship support the following should be followed:
Publication Acknowledgement Policy
The National Cancer Institute requires that publications acknowledge the Winship Cancer Institute Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG), and it is tracking compliance. If a Winship Cancer Institute CCSG-supported Shared Resource provided data, designed the study, performed analyses, provided results used in your publication, and/or provided any systems or services that were used for the work that resulted in your publication, please include the following statement in the acknowledgment section of your publication(s):
Research reported in this publication was supported in part by the Pediatrics/Winship Flow Cytometry Core of Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and NIH/NCI under award number P30CA138292. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
Core Usage Statistics - Updated 10th December 2024
* YTD
** Hours Booked
*** Number of Training Sessions
| Instrument**/Service | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Training*** | 166 | 198 | 167 | 219 | 211 |
| BD FACSymphony A5 Orac | 1956 | 1812 | 1548 | 1460 | 1774 |
| BD FACSymphony A3 Liberator | 962 | 1659 | 1681 | 1268 | 1135 |
| BD FACSymphony A1 Villa (Oct 2022) | 0 | 0 | 81 | 487 | 728 |
| Cytek Aurora Zen | 1890 | 2175 | 1158 | 803 | 1518 |
| Cytek Aurora Avon | 1198 | 1556 | 967 | 1389 | 1640 |
| Cytek Aurora Blake (July 2021) | 0 | 353 | 1031 | 1469 | 2168 |
| Cytek Aurora Soolin (Jan 2022) | 0 | 0 | 596 | 1238 | 1302 |
| FACS Aria II (Ret Sep 2024) | 534 | 703 | 700 | 664 | 368 |
| Aurora CS (Online May 2023) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 161 | 402 |
| BD FACSDiscover S8 (Nov 2024) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Cytoflex The Hooded Claw | 1097 | 1395 | 777 | 618 | 328 |
| Imagestream MKII Buzzwagon | 47 | 83 | 35 | 44 | 228 |
| Total | 7684 | 9736 | 8574 | 9601 | 11601 |
The ARIA II is regularly tested (every three months) for Aerosol containment and Mycoplasma. The results from these tests will be posted here shortly after. If one of these tests fails, corrective action will be taken.
Reporting Instrument Issues
The Emory + Pediatrics/Winship flow cytometry core is pleased to announce that we can offer remote support on some of our instruments.
If a staff member is available they will provide you with a zoom link for you to click on, this will open up a Zoom Meeting and allow two way communication via camera/microphone as well as screen sharing and control.
To request support:
Submit a Low priority Incident Report as usual via PPMS.
IF a staff member is available they will email you a link to click on within 5 minutes. (If you do not receive a link within this timeframe then staff are not available).
A remote session will open, you may be requested to give permission for a member of staff to share and control the screen, they will walk you through the steps.
We hope that this will provide a quicker way to assist users to resolve most issues without an in person visit.
Support is available on the following instruments:
FACSymphony A5 – Orac (https://ppms.us/emory/creatinc/?item=178)
FACSymphony A3 – Liberator (https://ppms.us/emory/creatinc/?item=190)
FACSymphony A1 - Villa (https://ppms.us/emory/creatinc/?item=294)
Cytek Aurora – Zen (https://ppms.us/emory/creatinc/?item=179)
Cytek Aurora – Avon (https://ppms.us/emory/creatinc/?item=180)
Cytek Aurora - Blake (https://ppms.us/emory/creatinc/?item=275)
Cytek Aurora - Sooolin (https://ppms.us/emory/creatinc/?item=285)
BC Cytoflex - The Hooded Claw (https://ppms.us/emory/creatinc/?item=55)
Imagestream (ISX) – The Buzzwagon (https://ppms.us/emory/creatinc/?item=58)
FACS Aria II – The Mean Machine (for live viewing of your sort) - https://ppms.us/emory/creatinc/?item=51
Meet the Team
David Archer, PhD
Scientific Director, Pediatric+Winship Flow Cytometry Core and Animal Physiology Core
Aaron Rae
Technical Director, Pediatric+Winship Flow Cytometry Core
