µCount3D – Automated Microbial Live Cell Imaging & Counting

Description

The µCount3D is an advanced live-cell imaging platform designed to rapidly count and analyze pure cultures of bacteria, yeasts, and fungal spores in liquid samples. Leveraging FluidScope™ proprietary scanning technology, digital imaging, and deep learning, µCount3D delivers accurate, reproducible automated spore counts or automated bacteria counts in 8 minutes or less, eliminating the need for time-consuming manual methods.

Ideal for microbiology labs, food and crop science, ecology, medicine, and industrial applications, the µCount3D provides real-time, volume-based quantification without stains, dyes, or fluorescence labeling. Neutec is proud to offer the µCount3D from Biosense for its swift yet highly accurate output for automated microbial cell imaging and counting processes. These include:

Key Benefits

• Automated Accuracy: Replace error-prone manual counts with reproducible, machine-learning–driven results.
• Time Savings: Achieve reliable counts in under 8 minutes compared to hours for plate or hemocytometer methods.
• Label-Free Imaging: Works with transparent media; no stains or dyes required.
• Versatile Applications: Optimized for bacteria, yeast, and fungal spores, including morphology-based co-culture analysis. Ideal for highly accurate automated fungal spore counting.
• High-Throughput Ready: Triplicate chambers and exportable image reports support routine lab workflows.

Technology & Workflow

FluidScope™ Scanning Technology

µCount3D uses tilted-camera optical scanning to image a 3D volume rather than a flat plane. Each image covers a 150 µm height and overlaps to generate both vertical and horizontal z-stacks, ensuring every object in the sample volume is captured in focus, producing more resolute microbial cell imaging and is ideal for fast and highly accurate automated fungal spore counting.

• Fungal Spores:  Imaged at the bottom of the µCassetteF chamber (200 µm). Deep learning algorithms analyze 400 overlapping images, reporting spores/ml with visual documentation. 
• Bacteria: Imaged throughout a free volume in the µCassetteB chamber (800 µm). Counts include all bacteria down to 0.5 µm resolution, reported as bacteria/ml with supporting images.

µCassette Specifications

• µCassetteB (Bacteria): 65 µl per chamber
• µCassetteF (Fungal spores): 30 µl per chamber
• Disposable format (no reusable cassettes)

Software & Export

• Powered by Count3D software with AI-driven recognition
• Compatible with UniExplorer for job and image export
• Supports external analysis via platforms like FIJI

Advantages Over Traditional Methods

• Compared to Colony Counts: Plate counts require dilution, incubation, and manual counting, introducing variability. µCount3D provides a faster, direct measurement with strong correlation to CFU counts.
• Compared to Flow Cytometry: µCount3D offers similar precision at a fraction of the cost, with visual validation via images.
• Compared to Microscopy: Automates image capture and analysis, reducing observer bias and hands-on labor.

Validation – E. coli Case Study

In validation studies comparing µCount3D against IntuGrow CFU/ml agar counts, µCount3D showed a linear correlation (R² = 0.991) across dilution series. Plate counts tended to read slightly higher, likely due to pipetting variability during serial dilutions. Repeated trials confirmed consistent performance, establishing µCount3D as a robust alternative to manual CFU enumeration.

Fast. Reliable. Automated.
The µCount3D streamlines microbial counting, bringing consistency, reproducibility, and efficiency to any laboratory working with bacteria, yeast, or fungal spores. Speak with our Neutec representatives regarding your specific microbial cell counter requirements for recommendations and guidance.