| Description |
Mass cytometry is a newly emerging technology that may play a pivotal role in the clinical laboratory. By combining time-of-flight mass spectrometry with fluorescence cytometry methodologies, mass cytometry has already surpassed the current capabilities of fluorescence cytometry. Although mass cytometry has already proven to be a useful tool in research, little investigation has been performed into the clinical utility it holds. Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) patients were chosen as a study population because they are a population that may greatly benefit from the use of mass cytometry. Current classification is limited to B cell immunophenotype. Part of the reason classifications have been so limited in their scope may be the marker limit imposed by fluorescence cytometry. The main advantage of mass cytometry is the increased marker limit per test tube. In this study, we found that mass cytometry meets current fluorescence cytometry precision criteria. Healthy donors were directly compared across both mass cytometry and fluorescence cytometry. While differences were observed, both platforms perform similarly. An investigation into the CVID patient population revealed the potential impact mass cytometry holds for the clinical laboratory. Many significant differences were observed between CVID patient and healthy donor cell populations. These differences were not isolated to the B cell population subsets, which supports the need for better classification methods for CVID patients. Our study demonstrates the iv importance mass cytometry has for the clinical laboratory and classification of a heterogeneous patient population such as CVID. |
