The key fluidic problem in flow cytometry is maintaining laminar flow in order to maintain relatively uniform core diameter and position; increasing the viscosity dramatically would probably lead to lower optimal flow velocity, which would actually be helpful if you wanted to increase sensitivity by increasing dwell time in the illuminating beam. We, Los Alamos, and others have used low flow velocities for high-sensitivity flow cytometry (e.g., scatter measurements of viruses, fluorescence measurements of DNA fragments). If you used an actual flow nozzle, as with a stream in air system, viscosity would be a problem; with a closed flow cell, it shouldn't be. Of course, lower flow velocity will limit the number of events you can analyze per unit time. -Howard
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