In order to make appropriate conclusions from flow cytometry data it’s important to carefully design the experiment with proper controls. These include compensation controls, fluorescence minus one (FMO) controls, isotype controls, isoclonic controls, and unstained controls. Each control serves a unique purpose and not all controls are required for every experiment. The video below goes through the differences between these controls and how they can be utilized. If you wish to download the slides for the video, you can find them here. Below the video you’ll find a link to a blog post from a series called “Avoid Bad Data”.

For further information on compensation, see the compensation resource.