Benefits of Real-Time Live-Cell Imaging
Three-dimensional (3D) cell-based assays replace a host of tissue, cell, and animal test models but have a reputation for lacking time resolution. For example, traditional, endpoint cell-based experiments correlate doses of test compounds to exposure at convenient (and sometimes arbitrary) timepoints, which fails to address the relevance of kinetics. Real-time, live-cell assays, which capture biological changes as they occur, are therefore more informative for answering critical questions of cause and effect.
In this piece, Dr. Oksana Sirenko, Sr. Manager, Assay Development at Molecular Devices, discusses the evolving methods around optimizing 3D cultures such as organoids, providing a platform suitable for basic research, including drug screening.