Experimental Evaluation of an Interferometric Light Microscopy Particle Counter for Titering and Characterization of Virus Preparations

Virus particle concentration is a critical piece of information for virology, viral vaccines and gene therapy research. We tested a novel nanoparticle counting device, "Videodrop", for its efficacy in titering and characterization of virus particles. The Videodrop nanoparticle counter is based on interferometric light microscopy (ILM). The method allows the detection of particles under the diffraction limit capabilities of conventional light microscopy. We analyzed lenti-, adeno-, and baculovirus samples in different concentrations and compared the readings against traditional titering and characterization methods. The tested Videodrop particle counter is especially useful when measuring high-concentration purified virus preparations. Certain non-purified sample types or small viruses may be impossible to characterize or may require the use of standard curve or background subtraction methods, which increases the duration of the analysis. Together, our testing shows that Videodrop is a reasonable option for virus particle counting in situations where a moderate number of samples need to be analyzed quickly.