Jm. Durnford et al., AUTOMATED MAMMALIAN-CELL BIOASSAYS FOR EVALUATING POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC IMMUNOMODULATOR ANALOGS, Chemometrics and intelligent laboratory systems, 26(2), 1994, pp. 101-105
Some mammalian cell lines in culture respond to exogenously added immu
nomodulators by induction of specific cell surface antigens or secreti
on of protein products. These proteins can be detected by immunoassay.
The sample preparation and cell dosing steps of such cell based bioas
says have been automated using a robotic liquid handling system housed
in a containment chamber. These automated bioassays have been in near
ly continuous use for over a year. Excellent cell viability has been m
aintained, and no contamination has been observed with either adherent
or suspension target cell cultures. The cell response to addition of
exogenous cytokine was identical when measured by either the automated
or the manual assay. Data from triplicate samples evaluated on the sa
me microtiter plate showed <5% CV. Using these automated bioassays, th
e in vitro efficacy of over 15,000 potential agonists and antagonists
has been examined.