Apparatus and process for the detection and counting of rarely occurring mammalian cells

Method for detecting and counting rarely occurring mammalian cells, comprising the steps of:

• spreading the specimen to be analyzed and potentially containing the rare mammalian cells to be detected, over a solid support, in such a way to obtain a thin layer;
• depositing on the solid support appropriate reagents to fluorescently label the cells searched using techniques which cause emission of a fluorescent light at a selected wavelength;
• such techniques being used either individually or simultaneously on a given sample to produce fluorescent light at one or more wavelength as a discrimination tool or as a way of identifying or selecting only certain type of rare cells;
• scanning said solid support with an incident beam from a laser, forming a laser spot on said solid support, said laser spot being substantially greater than the cells to be detected, said laser spot size being comprised between 15 and 30 .mu.m, wherein the distance between two scanning lines is such that each element of the said support is scanned at least twice, by partial overlapping of adjacent scanning paths;
• and simultaneously:
• detecting the resultant fluorescent light at least at one wavelength, by selecting as samples only detected signals exceeding a given threshold, wherein a set of adjacent samples on a scan-line represents a feature;
• establishing a set of correlated-features by a line-to-line correlation of individual features, by comparing features on each pair of adjacent lines in time-synchrony, counting the number of lines over which said set of correlated-features occur, each set of correlated-features forming an event, and eliminating any single uncorrelated-features;
• comparing said correlated-features on each pair of adjacent lines in time synchrony, at least at two different wavelengths .lambda..sub.1 and .lambda..sub.2 for selecting the correlated-features having an emission intensity ratio at said two wavelengths lower than a predetermined number, being specified that if the emission ratio at said wavelengths generated by any correlated samples is greater than a predefined value, the complete event is eliminated;
• making a size discrimination of retained events and selecting those having a size corresponding to the type of cells searched;
• determining if, for retained events after size discrimination, the events energy profile in three dimensions is within predetermined Gaussian shape criteria and rejecting events not within said predetermined Gaussian shape criteria;
• and
• counting said remaining events to determine and to count exclusively the fluorescent cells present on said solid support.

Apparatus for detecting and counting cells by fluorescence, comprising:

• a laser light source for emitting an incident light beam, cooperating with means for focusing said laser beam into a laser spot, the dimension of which on a solid support is substantially greater than the type of mammalian cells to be detected and counted, said laser spot size being comprised between 15 and 30 .mu.m;
• scanning means for directing the light from said light source onto said solid support to spotwise irradiate the mammalian cells to produce fluorescence spots, wherein the distance between two scanning lines is such that each element of the support is scanned at least twice, by partial overlapping of adjacent scanning paths;
• means for detecting and photoelectrically converting said emitted fluorescence at least at two different wavelengths .lambda..sub.1 and .lambda..sub.2 ;
• means for discriminating and eliminating non-mammalian fluorescence including a digital signal processor and a plurality of optic paths for selecting at least two emission fluorescence wavelengths;
• signal processing means for establishing sets of correlated-features by a line-to-line correlation of individual features, by comparing features on each pair of adjacent lines in time synchrony, counting the number of lines over which said set of correlated-features occur, each set of correlated-features forming an event, and eliminating any single uncorrelated feature, occuring only on one line;
• comparing said correlated-features on each pair of adjacent lines in time synchrony, at least at two different wavelengths .lambda..sub.1 and .lambda..sub.2, for selecting the correlated-features having an emission intensity ratio at said two wavelengths lower than a predetermined number, being specified that if the emission ratio at said wavelengths generated by any correlated features is greater than a predefined value, the complete event is eliminated;
• making a size discrimination of retained events and selecting the events having a size corresponding to the type of mammalian cells searched;
• determining if for retained events after size discrimination, the events energy profile in three dimensions is within predetermined Gaussian shape criteria and rejecting events not within said predetermined Gaussian shape criteria, and counting said remaining events to determine and to count exclusively the fluorescent mammalian cells present on said solid support.