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PerkinElmer Showcases Advanced Cellular Science Research and Drug Discovery Technologies at SBS 2007

PerkinElmer
18 Apr 2007

Product news

PerkinElmer, Inc., a global leader in Health Sciences and Photonics, showcased its advanced cellular science research and drug discovery products at the 2007 Society for Biomolecular Science (SBS) 13th Annual Meeting, April 15-19, in Montreal, Canada.

The newly enhanced technology offerings focus on powerful cell-based screening and high content analysis platforms. A cell-based approach to screening offers researchers greater insight into the complex mechanisms of the cell, providing higher-value content and more clinically relevant data for drug discovery.

"Research and pharmaceutical laboratories require advanced cell-based screening and analysis technologies in order to understand complex disease mechanisms, as well as to develop the next generation of critical drugs and therapies," said Robert F. Friel, president of PerkinElmer Life and Analytical Sciences. "With our deep expertise in the fundamental processes of drug discovery and cellular research, PerkinElmer has now assembled the most comprehensive and integrated portfolio of leading-edge technologies in advanced cellular science, including proven high throughput, and high content screening and analysis instruments and reagents."

The pharmaceutical industry estimates that 50 percent of high throughput compound screening for drug discovery involves screening targets expressed in cells. Cell-based assays are utilized for both primary and secondary screening.

New from PerkinElmer

As a result of recent strategic acquisitions and dedicated product development, PerkinElmer has significantly expanded its technology offering in the advanced cellular sciences, debuting several new technologies at SBS 2007, including:

Reagents:

  • Euroscreen Products--AqueoScreen™ platform--A functional, homogenous, generic, aequorin-based (jellyfish luminescence) platform for detection of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) activation.
  • LANCE Ultra™ technology--A new, improved, homogenous Time Resolve Fluoresence (TRF) platform for Time Resolve-Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (TR-FRET) assays enabling higher sensitivity, speed, and productivity in PerkinElmer's high throughput screening assay platform. PerkinElmer introduced nine new kits for kinase assays.
  • steadylite™ plus and britelite™ plus--These firefly luciferase reporter gene assay kits deliver industry-leading speed and sensitivity with new conveniently refrigerated and odor-free formulations.
  • AlphaLISA™ technology--A highly sensitive, homogenous alternative to Enzyme-Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay (ELISA), this exclusive assay platform offers a wide dynamic range and easy automation.

Instruments:

  • JANUS® Project Manager Software--This new applications package harnesses the power of JANUS WinPREP® software and provides seamless integration, method development and application scheduling for the JANUS Automated Workstation with a variety of peripheral instruments. JANUS Project Manager also coordinates time-critical application events for ELISA, cell-based assays, binding applications, and enzyme measurement studies.
  • 1536 Head LumiLux™ Cellular Screening Platform--This new detection platform for high throughput screening (HTS) and ultra-high throughput screening (uHTS) kinetic flash and glow luminescent cellular assays offers a 1536 miniaturized format and "inject and read" automation capability to significantly increase productivity and improve cost efficiencies.
  • EnVision™ TRF Laser--This compact nitrogen laser module for the flexible EnVision Multilabel Plate Reader provides considerably improved performance for homogeneous TRF assays when compared to flash light excitation detection systems.
  • Evotec Technologies--cell::explorer™ High Content Screening (HCS) Workstation--The cell::explorer offers a fully integrated, ready-to-run automation solution that enables you to take maximum advantage of the powerful Opera™ HCS platform. The system is designed to grow as your needs grow and the basic module supports a wide range of screening applications, including general compound and siRNA screening.
  • Evotec Technologies--Opera™ HCS system and Acapella™ software--The Opera platform, coupled with powerful Acapella™ 3D imaging and analysis software, is an industry-leading tool for high content analysis that combines the precision of confocal microscopy with the throughput required for primary and secondary screening.

Advancing Cellular Science and Drug Discovery Workshop

PerkinElmer's comprehensive suite of advanced cellular science research technologies were featured at an interactive symposium on Sunday, April 15, 2007. Distinguished cellular scientists and industry experts examined current and future trends in cellular science and its impact on drug discovery. Highlights included presentations on novel and innovative applications for cell-based HTS and new solutions to accelerate drug discovery research. Patrick M. Sexton, Ph.D., Professor of Pharmacology, Monash University in Australia, and a world leader in understanding Family B GPCR function and the pharmacology of Receptor Activity Modifying Protein (RAMP)-based receptors, was the guest speaker for this session which demonstrated the latest in high throughput approaches to cell-based GPCR and kinase assays and biomarker analysis.

Links

PerkinElmerCompany website

Tags

ELISAEnzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), also known as enzyme immunoassays (EIA), are used for the detection and quantification of proteins, peptides and antibodies in a sample. ELISA often comes in kit format, with pre-selected antibody pairs to detect specific proteins or biomarkers of diseases such as diabetes and obesity, or cardiovascular and neurological disorders. Detection is made possible with chemiluminescent, fluorescent or colorimetric substrates and detection instruments such as microplate / ELISA readers. Other kits available include: Enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT) assays for the quantification of protein-producing cells and chemiluminescent immunoassays (CLIA) kits. Find the best ELISA kits and products in our peer-reviewed product directory: compare products, check customer reviews and receive pricing direct from manufacturers.High-Throughput ScreeningHigh-throughput screening (HTS) is an automated drug discovery technique for identification of active compounds against a compound library. Use HTS readers and integrated assay preparation / analysis workstations to screen your compounds. Identify active compounds against various HTS libraries, including membranes, proteins and peptides and HTS cell lines. Find the best high-throughput screening products in our peer-reviewed product directory: compare products, check customer reviews and receive pricing direct from manufacturers.Gel Doc / Image AnalysisGel documentation (gel doc) or gel imaging systems are used for the analysis of proteins, antibodies and nucleic acid immobilized in polyacrylamide or agarose gels, membranes or microarrays. Explore a range of a gel imaging systems, densitometers, scanners, transilluminators or UV lamp + CCD cameras for your image analysis solutions. Colorimetric, fluorescent and/or radioisotopic samples can be visualized and documented for further analysis. See gel doc / Image analysis software for quantitative 1D and 2D analysis of your samples. Find the best gel doc / image analysis products in our peer-reviewed product directory: compare products, check customer reviews and receive pricing direct from manufacturers.Cell-Based AssaysCell-based assays are used to monitor the presence, quantity and activities of a desired cellular analyte including drug molecules or biomarkers. This can reveal information on cell health (apoptosis, cytotoxicity, viability and proliferation assays), cell metabolism, cell migration and cell signaling mechanisms. Find the best cell-based assay products, kits and equipment with our peer reviewed product directory: compare products, check customer reviews and receiving pricing direct from manufacturers.High-Content ScreeningHigh-content screening (HCS), also known as high-content analysis (HCA), is a high-throughput technique used in drug discovery to identify substances that alter the phenotype of cells. HCS uses fluorescent microscopic imaging and automated image analysis to investigate cellular events such as apoptosis, cell viability, GPCR activation, oxide production, neurite outgrowth, and cell signaling. Find the best fluorescent labeling reagents, cellular assays, and high-content imaging systems in our peer-reviewed product directory: compare products, check customer reviews and receive pricing direct from manufacturers.BiomarkersBiomarkers are biological markers which can be measured and evaluated to indicate a biological state. The use of biomarkers in research and diagnosis can indicate a normal or disease state or drug response of cells / tissues. Biomarkers include genetic markers, cell surface markers such as antigens, antibodies or receptors and secreted molecules such as cytokines. An assay system is required for identification of biomarkers. :Compound AnalysisCompound analysis is used to discover specific compounds that could be promising candidates for pharmaceutical use. This potential is identified when compounds have the desired effect, such as interaction with a target protein, during high throughput screening.

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