cellasys will present two posters at the “18th European Congress on Alternatives to Animal Testing”:

1. “Monitoring of multilayer development of human 3D cornea constructs by trans-epithelial impedance measurement” together with the Institut für angewandte Zellkultur, Dr. Toni Lindl GmbH

2. “Comparison of standard and fetal-calf-serum-free cell culture media by impedance measurement” together with the Deutscher Tierschutzbund – Akademie für Tierschutz

Monitoring of multilayer development of human 3D cornea constructs by trans-epithelial impedance measurement
Measurement of transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) is a widely accepted method to monitor living epithelial cells in vitro. In the presented work we used a modified IMOLA-IVD system to monitor the multilayer development of human cornea epithelial (HCE) constructs at the air/liquid interface by means of transepithelial impedance (real and imaginary part). This is a useful method in the field of toxicology to study the effect of chemicals towards 3D- constructs of living cells. The method is highly sensitive, label-free, non invasive, reproducible and delivers additional information without the use of further histological analysis.

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Comparison of standard and fetal-calf-serum-free cell culture media by impedance measurement
Although considerable progress is made in the development of synthetic media for culturing cells, fetal calf serum (FCS) is still routinely used as the standard supplement for cell cultures. FCS is extracted from the blood of fetal calves thus raising strong ethical concerns. An abundance of scientific literature shows that fetuses are capable of experiencing pain and distress. From the animal welfare point of view the use of FCS therefore is not acceptable and researchers should be obliged to exploit all possibilities to grow their cells in media free of FCS. Consequently, in particular the use of FCS in standard protocols should be critically examined and replaced wherever possible.

We investigated whether the culturing of the L929 permanent mouse fibroblast cell line is possible using commercially available synthetic media, not containing FCS. Standard protocols for this cell line such as in various INVITTOX protocols require addition of 10% FCS into the cell culture medium. We used bioimpedance as an indicator of cell viability.

Meet us at the “35th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society“.

cellasys will contribute with an invited talk “Label-Free Monitoring of Whole Cell Vitality” and a poster entitled “Evaluation of an Inkjet Printed Biochip”.

Label-Free Monitoring of Whole Cell Vitality
The Intelligent Mobile Lab (IMOLA) delivers metabolic and morphological parameters of living cells in a label-free and real time way. It represents a key technology for the development of new cell-based assays. Electrochemical microsensors are used to measure the extracellular acidification (pH), cellular respiration (pO2), changes in cell number and morphology (electric impedance) in a controlled environment. These parameters are closely linked to the intracellular signaling network of the living cells. They are thus likely to respond sensitively to changes in cellular vitality. A wide spectrum of cell types can be tested with the system, including adherent and suspended cells, continuous cell lines, primary cells or tissue samples. The platform is described in detail and applications in the field’s oncology, toxicology and environmental monitoring are shown.

Evaluation of an Inkjet Printed Biochip
Micro-sensor biochips have various applications in the field of live sciences. In this work, we present first results from a biochip manufactured in inkjet technology. The micro-sensor, contacts and conductors of this biochip were printed with an inkjet process onto a flexible Kapton substrate. The micro-sensor is an interdigitated electrode structure comprising of a mixture of carbon nanoparticles and multi-walled carbon nanotubes. In our project the reaction of the structure toward changes in pH, dissolved oxygen concentration, glucose and lactate was evaluated.

Meet us at the Potsdam Days on Bioanalysis 2012.

During the the Potsdam Days on Bioanalysis 2012 Dr. Joachim Wiest will give a talk entitled “Label-free monitoring of living cells”.

Meet us at the 17th European Congress on Alternatives to Animal Testing

Dr. Joachim Wiest will give a talk entiteled “BioChip-based electrochemical platform for the label-free monitoring of living cells” at the 17th European Congress on Alternatives to Animal Testing.