Poster shows Biocel 1800 screening for stem cells

Researchers at I-Stem (Evry, France) have used a Biocel 1800 platform to automate high-content screening of small molecules for muscular dystrophy therapeutic research.

The research, which is described in a new technical poster available from Agilent Automation Solutions, shows the utility of the Biocel platform in performing automated screens on cell lines derived from human embryonic stem cells.

The most common adult neuromuscular disease, the Type 1 muscular dystrophy (DM1) is an autosomal monogenic disease characterised by the aggregation of mutated mRNA in structures called foci within cells' nuclei.

The poster describes how researchers screened the Prestwick library of FDA-approved compounds in a cell-based assay using an Agilent Automation Solutions Biocel 1800, looking for molecules targeting foci structure using a high-content screening (HCS) strategy.

Mesenchymal stem cells derived from the Vub03 mutated human embryonic stem-cell line were selected as a model for this research as they display foci when labelled by fluorescent in situ hybridisation (FISH) in 96-well plates.

The Biocel platform is shown to allow researchers to handle cell lines with confidence and precision and is now considered a critical part of I-Stem's stem-cell screening strategy.

To avoid risk of contamination to the cell suspensions, the Biocel 1800 platform was configured with ULPA-filtered environmental venting and temperature control.

The reported results demonstrate how the Biocel 1800 delivers a high level of liquid-handling reproducibility.

In addition, the poster describes how the researchers developed methodology for screening compounds using cell-based assays and two Agilent Vertical Pipetting Stations for cell-culture management and compound library management.

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