PDB single

instrumentation

Microscopes, Sample preparation, Analysis tools, Special detectors

Instrument Type

High Content Screening

Instrument Name

IN Cell Analyzer 2000

Manufacturer

GE Healthcare

Special Detectors

Instrument Photo

Instrument Description

Cell-based high-content screening (HCS) is a powerful methodology that allows investigating cellular processes, morphological and molecular features and their alterations induced by multiple chemical or genetic perturbations. Compared to biochemical screening, which gives an “average” response of the analyzed sample, this image-based HCS approach detects the responses of individual cells in the context of the cell population and allows localizing the response intracellularly.
The technology is based on the analysis of multiple cellular/sub-cellular parameters from high resolution images obtained with high throughput, which define a given cell phenotype. The multi-parametric nature of HCS allows identifying different cell populations and how they react to different molecules.
Since HCS is based on changes observed and measured on cell images, this technology allows drug discovery not only on diseases having a known pathological mechanism, but also on unknown target’s diseases.
Our facility has the imaging system (IN Cell Analyzer 2000) integrated with a robot (Freedom Evo 150, Tecan, which in turn is also integrated with an automated incubator and washer) programmed for preparing the plates in which the cells are cultured and treated with thousands of different small molecules. Those small molecules turning cells obtained from patients into a phenotype more similar to control cells become candidates for being drugs for the studied disease. All the facility is build under a biological hood for allowing sterility and the information obtained in the analyses is stored and administered in an own server.
IN Cell Analyzer 2000 is an automated cellular and sub-cellular imaging system for fixed and live cells. The system is equipped with environmental control (ability to regulate temperature and CO₂ within the system). The system allows time-lapse image acquisitions, and also provides inner liquid handling in cases for which a fast reaction like calcium-release is to be imaged.