CellTrace™ Far Red Cell Proliferation Kit is used for in vitro and in vivo labeling of cells to trace multiple generations using dye dilution by flow cytometry.

• Superior performance—bright, single-peak staining enables visualization of multiple generations
• Long-term signal stability—well-retained in cells for several days post stain
• Versatile—multiple colors available to easily combine with antibodies or markers of cell function, such as GFP
• Simple, robust staining protocol

View a selection guide for all CellTrace™ Cell Proliferation Kits for flow cytometry.

Superior fluorescent staining
Successful proliferation analysis by dye dilution requires an extremely bright dye to distinguish fluorescently labeled cells from auto-fluorescence after several cell divisions. The intense fluorescent staining provided by CellTrace™ Far Red dye enables the visualization of six or more generations of proliferating cells before the signal is overwhelmed by intrinsic cellular auto-fluorescence. This kit enables consistent, homogeneous staining results with very little fluorescence variation between cells in a population, so distinct generations can be seen without any requirement for complex modeling software.

Long-term signal retention
Unlike stains that label the lipid membrane of cells, CellTrace™ Far Red stain easily crosses the plasma membrane and covalently binds inside cells where the stable, well-retained fluorescent dye offers a consistent signal, even after several days in a cell culture environment. CellTrace™ Far Red dye binds covalently to all free amines on the surface and inside of cells and shows little cytotoxicity, with minimal observed effect on the proliferative ability or biology of cells.

Easy multiplexing with other fluorophores
The red excitation at 630 nm and emission at 661 nm of CellTrace™ Far Red dye make it ideal for multiplexing due to the limited spectral overlap with other common dyes (Alexa Fluor™ 488, FITC, and RPE) and fluorescent proteins (Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) and mCherry).

Simple, robust staining protocol
The CellTrace™ Far Red Cell Proliferation Kit contains convenient single-use vials of dry dye to permit small-scale experiments without preparing excess quantities of dye. A stock solution is prepared by dissolving the contents of a vial in anhydrous DMSO prior to use. To stain 1 mL of cells in protein-free medium, 1 μL of this stock solution is typically used. Cells should be stained for 20 minutes at room temperature with gentle agitation. A brief wash with complete medium will then quench any dye remaining in solution.