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Cell Size

Cell Size

Cell sizes vary widely among and within organisms. Bacterial cells range between 1-10 micrometers (μm)and are considerably smaller than most eukaryotic cells. The smallest bacteria are 0.1 μm in diameter—about a thousand times smaller than eukaryotic cells, which typically range from 10-100 μm.
Surface Area
Cells can take in nutrients and water via diffusion through the plasma membrane itself or through specific channels in the membrane. The area of the membrane surrounding the cells limits the...

Overview Of Cell Separation And Isolation

Overview Of Cell Separation And Isolation

Cell separation was first achieved in 1964 by S. H. Seal, who separated large tumor cells from the smaller blood cells using filtration. Two years later, Pohl and Hawk performed experiments on how cells respond differently to a nonuniform electric field based on the cell type. Such observations were the inception of cell separation methods, which allow isolating a single cell type from a heterogeneous sample.

Cell Diversity

Cell Diversity

The concept of a cell started with microscopic observations of dead cork tissue by Robert Hooke in 1665. Hooke coined the term "cell" based on the resemblance of the small subdivisions in the cork to the rooms that monks inhabited, called cells. About ten years later, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek became the first person to observe the living and moving cells under a microscope. In the century that followed, the theory that cells represented the basic unit of life developed.
Multicellular organisms...

Flow Cytometry

Flow Cytometry

The development of flow cytometry techniques began in 1934 with initial attempts by Andrew Moldavan, a bacteriologist who counted the cells in a flowing capillary system. Moldavan pumped cells through a capillary tube focused under a microscope for visualization. The invention of photometry allowed the measurement of differentially-stained cells, and Louis Kamentsky developed the first multiparameter flow cytometer in 1965 to identify and count the cancer cells in cervical tissue specimens.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 25, 2026

Isolating Single Cells from Xenopus Early Embryos and Sorting Them by Size

Isolating Single Cells from Xenopus Early Embryos and Sorting Them by Size

Published on: March 20, 2026

Sorting cells by size, shape and deformability.

Jason P Beech¹, Stefan H Holm, Karl Adolfsson

¹Division of Solid State Physics, nmC@LU, Lund University, Lund, Sweden. jason.beech@ftf.lth.se

|February 14, 2012

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Cellular separations can be improved by measuring cell shape and deformability, not just size. These properties offer a new way to specifically separate cells using microfluidic devices.

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Area of Science:

Biophysics
Cell Biology
Microfluidics

Background:

Cell size is a common parameter for cellular separations.
Shape and deformability are largely unexplored parameters for cell separation.

Purpose of the Study:

To demonstrate the measurement and application of cell shape and deformability for cellular separations.
To highlight these properties as untapped sources of specificity in microfluidic devices.

Main Methods:

Development of microfluidic devices for measuring cell shape and deformability.
Implementation of separation techniques based on these cellular properties.

Main Results:

Successfully measured cell shape and deformability.
Demonstrated the ability to separate cells based on these parameters, offering enhanced specificity.
Validated shape and deformability as effective parameters in microfluidic cell separation.

Conclusions:

Cell shape and deformability are valuable, underutilized parameters for cellular separations.
Microfluidic devices can effectively measure and utilize these properties for improved cell isolation and analysis.