Guidelines for the Presentation of Flow Cytometric Data

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses a number of guidelines for the presentation of flow cytometric data, and outlines some concepts underlying the presentation of flow cytometric data in a consistent and informative manner. These guidelines aim at preparation of data for publication in print but are applicable to the presentation of data. All quantitative information should be derived from statistical analyses that are presented in addition to the graphics—in the form of numerical annotations on the graphics or in the accompanying text. The graphs are used to illustrate variations in patterns. However, the main purposes of statistical analysis are to reduce a complex data set to a manageable number of summary values and to test for statistical significance. Numerical analyses are useful in deciding how much data should be acquired to ensure that purely statistical accuracy is adequate for the intended analysis. The Data Presentation Standards Committee of the International Society for Analytical Cytology strives to update, revise, and expand these guidelines and to encompass topics of more specialized nature. This committee develops a strict set of publication guidelines that journal publishers can use to ensure consistent and accurate presentation of flow cytometric data.