Monitor Toxicity, Anti-Cancer Drug Efficacy and Cytokine Response with New Bioluminescent Cytotoxicity Technology

Promega Corporation, a global leader in bioluminescent technologies and cell-based assays, announces the launch of the CytoTox-Glo™ Cytotoxicity Assay at the 5th annual Screening Europe conference and exhibition. Whether monitoring chemical toxicity, anti-cancer drug efficacy or cytokine response, the CytoTox-Glo Assay provides a highly sensitive, simple, luminescent method that allows the user to detect small changes in cell viability.

The assay measures a distinct "dead-cell" protease biomarker released from cells that have lost membrane integrity, a key indicator of cytotoxicity. The assay uses a peptide substrate, that after cleavage by the "dead-cell" protease, releases luciferin. This is a substrate for a proprietary thermostable luciferase (Ultra-Glo™ Recombinant Luciferase). The luciferase/luciferin reaction produces light in the form of a stable "glow-type" luminescent signal. The intensity of the signal correlates with dead-cell number.

The CytoTox-Glo Assay has a large dynamic range with excellent linearity, providing unprecedented sensitivity in 96-well plates or high-density formats. The high sensitivity and scalability minimizes both the number of cells required and the amount of compound used. This results in reduced cell culture and compound costs. Features of this assay are detailed in a talk by Promega:

Terry Riss, PhD, Senior R&D Scientist
"Multiplexing ADME-Tox Cell-based Assays Using Primary Cells"
Screening Europe on February 19, 2008 at 14:00 hours
Data Available Upon Request