Flow cytometry has become an important tool in the life sciences and medical fields, yet there are often few opportunities for undergraduate students to receive training with this type of instrumentation as part of life science curricula at many colleges and universities. We describe a straightforward laboratory exercise designed for a college‐level biochemistry course that uses flow cytometry to investigate changes in bacterial membrane potential and cell viability in response to various treatments. Anecdotally, we have noticed that many students often have difficulty understanding the concept of membrane potential and the essential role that it plays in cellular processes. Therefore, this exercise also provides a pedagogical tool for visualizing changes in cellular membrane potential as way to enhancing students' comprehension of this abstract concept. Students' understanding of flow cytometry and membrane potential was assessed using a preactivity and postactivity quiz; the results indicate that the students' understanding of these concepts significantly improved after they completed this laboratory exercise. © 2019 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 48(1):61–66, 2020.

中文翻译：

---

在本科生化实验课中使用流式细胞术引导调查细菌膜电位

流式细胞术已成为生命科学和医学领域的重要工具，但在许多学院和大学，作为生命科学课程的一部分，本科生通常很少有机会接受此类仪器的培训。我们描述了一个简单的实验室练习，专为大学水平的生物化学课程设计，该课程使用流式细胞术来研究细菌膜电位和细胞活力的变化以响应各种治疗。有趣的是，我们注意到许多学生通常难以理解膜电位的概念及其在细胞过程中的重要作用。因此，本练习还提供了一种教学工具，用于可视化细胞膜电位的变化，以此提高学生的能力。理解这个抽象的概念。使用活动前和活动后测验评估学生对流式细胞术和膜电位的理解；结果表明，学生在完成本实验练习后对这些概念的理解显着提高。© 2019 国际生物化学与分子生物学联盟，48(1):61–66，2020。