QBC Autoread Plus: Technology

The technology at the heart of the Autoread is a process known as Quantitative Buffy Coat (QBC) analysis.  This process, which gives QBC Diagnostics its name, is based on the physiological phenomenon in which the differing densities of blood components will cause them to separate into layers when centrifuged at a high rate of speed.

QBC tubes, including the many varieties available for the Autoread, take advantage of this phenomenon in two ways.  First, through the use of a small plastic float with the approximate density of platelets and white blood cells (the "buffy coat"), those usually small layers can be physically expanded for greater analysis.  Second, a metachromatic acridine orange stain coating the inside of the tubes stain lymphocytes and monocytes green, platelets yellow, and granulocytes orange, making the difference between layers visible, even to the naked eye.

Once a sample has been centrifuged, the Autoread utilizes a dual light source and optical detector to read the results of the test.  Once complete, the Autoread prints the results to an attached external printer.