Cell Dilution Factor
Factor by which a sample is diluted.
Formula
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Example
1 mL in 10 mL ⇒ 10×
How it works
The dilution factor tells you how many times a sample has been spread out by adding diluent such as water, buffer, or media. It works because the final volume includes both the original sample and the added liquid, so dividing total volume by sample volume gives the multiplier for how much the sample has been diluted. For example, if 2 mL of sample is brought up to 20 mL total, each part of the sample is now in ten times as much liquid as before, so the dilution factor is 10.
When to use it
Use this formula when preparing diluted solutions in a lab, such as serial dilutions, microbiology plating, or adjusting concentrations of cells, enzymes, or reagents. It is also useful when you need to report how much a stock solution was diluted before measurement or analysis.
Worked example, step by step
A scientist takes 5 mL of a cell suspension and adds diluent until the total volume is 40 mL. DF = V_final / V_sample DF = 40 mL / 5 mL DF = 8 The sample was diluted 8-fold, or 8×.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Using the added diluent volume instead of the final total volume
- Mixing up sample volume and final volume in the fraction
- Forgetting that the dilution factor is unitless, so the units must match and cancel
Did You Know?
Serial dilution lets microbiologists count bacteria that are far too numerous to tally directly.
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