University of California Davis: Comprehensive Course in Flow Cytometry

Description

Comprehensive ONLINE Flow Cytometry training course

University of California Davis Flow Cytometry Shared Resource

Comprehensive Course in Flow Cytometry – ONLINE, March 9-13, 2026, PST

https://health.ucdavis.edu/cancer/research/sharedresources/flowcytometry.html

This comprehensive ONLINE flow cytometry course will teach you how flow cytometers work and how to design your assays to achieve reliable and reproducible results. After covering the basics, we’ll discuss advanced topics including multicolor panel design, troubleshooting, data analysis and artifact reduction. The concepts introduced in these lectures will be complemented by virtual laboratory sessions that will expand your knowledge of key concepts and best practices in analytic cytometry, cell sorting, experiment design and analysis. Your instructors are Bridget (director) and Jonathan (manager) of the UC Davis Flow Cytometry Shared Resource Laboratories who have over 35 years of combined experience in flow cytometry that provides the foundation of this excellent learning experience! The lecture and laboratory modules will be conducted through teleconferencing software to bring you our time-tested training course to you safely and conveniently. The course includes daily interactive sessions, such as live data analysis, a live panel design workshop, trivia, and question/answer sessions to give students the best online experience and instructive time at the cytometers using live streaming videos. Lectures from our vendor partners will provide brief “bite-sized” discussions of topics curated by your instructors to familiarize you with the latest flow cytometry technologies. Please make plans to join us for this affordable training opportunity. The course is offered live and online in the Pacific Time Zone. Click here for registration details.

A sample schedule from our most recent course is provided at the end of this announcement.

The training objectives are to: 

• Explain the fundamental concepts of how flow cytometers work
• Illustrate the physical and electronic concepts in light collection and signal processing
• Discuss best practices in sample preparation for flow cytometry
• Describe standard assays and techniques
• Demystify multicolor cell staining, compensation and analysis
• 
  

Laboratory sessions include:

• UC Davis LSRII: Software setup for successful multicolor acquisition and analysis
• UC Davis Astrios Cell Sorter: Cell sorting fundamentals using the Beckman Coulter Astrios
• Cytometer setup and quality control for consistent performance
• Principles and Advantages of Spectral Cytometry on the Cytek Aurora
• Multicolor Panel Design workshop with BD Biosciences – don’t miss this!
• FlowJo basic and advanced flow cytometry data analysis – Learn from the experts!
• New: Data analysis Lab – Step by step process to using FlowJo and interpreting complex data.
• 
  

Recent student feedback from our online courses:

• Bridget and Jonathan are great teachers and are very knowledgeable, they explained concepts in a way that was easy to understand and patiently answered all questions.
• Both instructors are excellent presenters, and I really appreciated the comprehensive walkthrough even for someone totally new to flow cytometry.
• Thanks for offering the online training - I had time in the evenings and during breaks to take care of cells and etc.; for me, it was much easier than traveling!
• I loved that Bridget and Jonathan were the primary instructors. It's excellent to have fewer instructors, as it makes a more cohesive unit. This course exceeded expectations.
• I could have attended in person but I greatly appreciated the convenience of the online format. Extremely well-executed.
• I really appreciated the biological background/the "why" portion of chosen panels, gating choices, etc. The detailed data analysis in FlowJo (as well as arranging for us to obtain this software for training, and practice in real-time during the class). The formats offered in the class to assist in learning and serve as future resources were/are so valuable...having the pdf of lectures to look at while the lecture is going in Zoom allowed me to quickly scroll back if needed when slides advanced in the Zoom. Protocols...so awesome! Real-time teaching/demo in Flow-Jo and on instruments in the lab. Videos available from the previous day to revisit a topic was great. Multi color panel design group lab session was so valuable. Both Bridget McLaughlin and Jonathan Van Dyke  were excellent, they offered a comprehensive discussion on multiple flow cytometry topics, shared important experimental tips and resources and were available every step of the way to help and encourage to learn.

There is one option for attendance:

Full curriculum: Lecture plus afternoon laboratory sessions – limited to 50 participants

Tuition Fees: 

• UC Davis (and UC System) Faculty, Post-Docs, Students and Staff: $900.00
• Cancer Center Members from U.S. NCI-Designated Cancer Centers: $950.00
• Other Non-UC Academic Institutions: $1,200.00
• For Profit Companies/Industry Partners/Biotechnology Firms: $1,595.00

SAMPLE SCHEDULE: FOR YOUR REFERENCE ONLY

UC Davis Comprehensive Course in Flow Cytometry

February 3-7, 2025, Pacific Standard Time (PST)

Lead Instructor: Bridget McLaughlin, Director, UC Davis Flow Cytometry Shared Resource Lab

Co-Instructor: Jonathan Van Dyke, Assoc. Director, UC Davis Flow Cytometry Shared Resource Lab

Please note: all lectures and sessions will be offered “live and online” in the PST time zone. Please note that the start/end times listed in our schedule are approximate. 

Monday

8:15-8:30 Welcome

8:30-9:15 Lecture 1 - Introduction to Cytometry

9:15 – 10:20 Lecture 2 - Inside the Cytometer: Fluidics, Optics and Electronics

10:20 – 10:30 Break

10:30 – 12:00 Lecture 3 - Fluorescence: Getting to Know Your Fluorochromes

12:00 – 1:00 Lunch

1:00 – 2:15 Lecture 4 - Understanding Flow Cytometry Data

2:15 – 3:15 Lecture 5 - Reagents, Antibodies and Fluorescent Probes

3:15– 3:30 Break

3:30 - 4:30 Data Analysis with FlowJo – Bridget and Jonathan

4:30- 4:45 Day 1 Trivia

4:45-5:00 Q and A – review key takeaways/knowledge check presentation

Tuesday

8:30-9:10 Lecture 6 - Data Analysis and Gating

9:10-10:30 Lecture 7 - Compensation

10:30-10:40 Break

10:40- 12:00 Lecture 8 – Controls

12:00-1:00 Lunch

1:00 – 2:00 Data Analysis with FlowJo – Bridget and Jonathan

2:00 – 3:30 Lecture 9 - Characterization and Experimental Setup

3:30-3:45 Break

3:45 – 4:30 pm Group Lab Session 1 “Introduction to FlowJo”; Nicolas Loof, FlowJo

4:30– 4:45 Trivia Day 2

4:45-5:00 Q and A

Wednesday

8:30 – 9:30 Lecture 10 - Cell Preparation Considerations

9:30-10:30 Lecture 11 - Intracellular Staining

10:30- 10:40 Break

10:40-11:40 Data Analysis with FlowJo – Bridget and Jonathan

11:40 – 12:00 Day 3 Trivia Q and A *Remind students to stay logged into Zoom if possible

12:00-1:00 Lunch

LABORATORY SESSIONS: AFTERNOON

1:00 – 2:55 Lab Session 1

Group 1: Astrios – Cell Sorting

Group 2: LSRII – Multicolor Flow

Brief break

3:05 – 5:00 Lab Session 2

Group 1: LSRII – Multicolor Flow

Group 2: Astrios – Cell Sorting

Thursday

8:30 – 10:00 Lecture 12 - Multicolor Panel Design

10:00 – 10:15 Break

10:15- 11:00 Data Analysis with FlowJo: Bridget and Jonathan

11:00-12:00 Lecture 13 – Statistics *Remind students to stay logged into Zoom if possible

12:00-1:00 Lunch

LABORATORY SESSIONS: AFTERNOON

1:00 – 2:55 Lab Session 1

Group 1: Spectral Cytometry with the Cytek Aurora

Group 2: Group Lab: Flow Jo Data Analysis with your Peers

Brief Break

3:05 – 5:00 Lab Session 2

Group 1: Group Lab: Flow Jo Data Analysis with your Peers

Group 2: Spectral Cytometry with the Cytek Aurora

Friday

PANEL DESIGN LABORATORY 8:30-11:30 a.m.

8:30 – 9:30 Group Lab: Panel Design Laboratory, Brandy Bergher,  BD Biosciences

9:30-9:45 Break

9:45 – 11:30 Group Lab: Panel Design Laboratory with BD Biosciences: Continued

11:30 –12:30 Lecture 14 – Applications in Flow Cytometry 

12:30 -1:00 Lunch (note shorter timeframe!)

1:00-2:15 Lecture 15 – Troubleshooting Problems

2:15 – 2:30 Break

2:30 – 3:30 FlowJo Advanced Tools and PlugIn Platforms, Nicolas Loof, FlowJo

3:30 – 4:00  Day 4 & 5 Trivia, Q and A and course wrap up