Performance Evaluation of Microscanner Plus, an Automated Image-Based Cell Counter, for Counting CD4+ T Lymphocytes...

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Medical Technology
• Virology

Background:

• Flow cytometry is the standard for CD4+ T lymphocyte counts in HIV monitoring.
• Resource-limited settings face challenges accessing flow cytometry technology.
• There is a need for simpler, cost-effective CD4+ T cell counting methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the Microscanner Plus, an automated image-based cell counter, for CD4+ T lymphocyte quantification.
• To compare the performance of the Microscanner Plus against standard flow cytometry.
• To assess the suitability of the Microscanner Plus for HIV patient monitoring.

Main Methods:

• The Microscanner Plus was used to count CD4+ T lymphocytes in samples from 47 HIV-infected patients and 87 healthy individuals.
• Results were compared with those obtained from a flow cytometer.
• Precision and reproducibility were assessed using CV% (coefficient of variation).

Main Results:

• The Microscanner Plus demonstrated high precision and reproducibility, with all CV% below 10%.
• The lowest detectable CD4 count was 15.27 cells/µL.
• A very high correlation coefficient (R=0.9906, p<0.0001) was observed between the Microscanner Plus and flow cytometry for CD4 counts in 134 clinical samples.

Conclusions:

• The automated Microscanner Plus exhibits acceptable analytical performance for CD4+ T lymphocyte counting.
• This device presents a viable and potentially valuable tool for monitoring HIV patients in resource-limited environments.
• The Microscanner Plus offers a promising alternative to traditional flow cytometry for CD4+ T cell enumeration.