Method for accurately enumerating and sensitively qualifying

Abstract

A method for identifying, characterizing, categorizing and enumerating cells within a cell population. The survivorship characteristics of the different cell populations is used to obtain quantitative and qualitative information about the cell populations initially present in the sample solution before conditions were imposed on the sample solution to elicit a response. The monitored cell survivorship response may be either direct disappearance of intact cells or the appearance of cell structures, carcasses, ghosts or residuum. In a preferred embodiment, a leukocyte cell decay rate in the presence of an erythrolytic agent is determined by monitoring leukocyte counts at several time intervals after the addition of the erythrolytic agent to the sample solution. The leukocyte decay rate is then used to indicate the presence of a fragile leukocyte population, and to accurately estimate the number of leukocytes initially present in the whole blood sample. The use of stronger erythrolytic agents in samples with lyse-resistant erythrocytes while preserving the accuracy of leukocyte counts is allowed. The present method permits calculation of a leukocyte decay rate which can be back extrapolated to time zero to provide an accurate estimate of the leukocyte count initially present in the whole blood sample.