Identifying, counting, and performing quantitative measurements on cells or cellular responses throughout discovery and development workflows can be challenging. This is because the varying complexities of biological sources involved in studies and treatments require individualized and optimized conditions, formulations, and specialized bioprocessing steps that are dependent on their intended use. Achieving optimization requires consideration of several key factors when determining the best procedures, parameters, and system selections for each planned experiment. Cell counting challenges High ..read more

Laboratory professionals in all areas of science have experienced significant changes in recent years, and 2022 was no exception. As steady progress continues in returning to normalcy as we’ve learned how to manage COVID-19, the emergence of mpox last year brought a new set of challenges for healthcare professionals, laboratories and diagnostics developers to navigate. Confronting and containing the spread of other infectious diseases like tuberculosis, influenza A and B as well as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) also remained top global health priorities, as was testing to prevent the trans ..read more

Although the novel coronavirus is the subject of nearly every media story right now, several years ago it was the Zika virus (ZIKV) gathering a great deal of attention. Zika stems from the flavivirus family, and is primarily transmitted via Aedes mosquitoes and sexual contact. Maternal Zika virus infection has the potential to result in tragic birth defects, including microcephaly, and the virus is also strongly associated with neurologic complications such as encephalitis, meningoencephalitis, and development of Guillain-Barre syndrome. There are currently no targeted therapeutics for its tre ..read more

Following the announcement that PerkinElmer has acquired Cisbio Bioassays, here is a little more information about the exciting opportunities this brings to life sciences researchers. Over the last 20 years, Cisbio has become a leading Life Sciences company which develops, manufactures, and markets high quality kits and reagents for the drug discovery and life science markets used by pharmaceutical, biotechnology, academia and contract research organizations across the globe. The company notably developed a proprietary HTRF® technology which is a type of TR-FRET assay used in Life Sciences. Du ..read more

The potential to harness an individual’s immune system to treat cancer has revolutionized the oncology field. Coined immunotherapy, this umbrella term describes several types of treatment, including immune checkpoint inhibitors, immune system modulators, and adoptive cell therapies. Each triggers the immune system in a different way to fight cancer. One approach currently being explored involves stimulating innate immune response pathways. For example, the STimulator of InterferoN Genes (STING) pathway, which is known to play a critical role in innate immunity in response to viral and bacteria ..read more

In early 2019, no one could have predicted that a novel coronavirus would sweep around the globe and cause one of the most significant health crises of recent times. Fast-forward to today, and thousands of scientists have turned their attention to studying SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the current COVID-19 pandemic. This research pivot led to a torrent of scientific papers describing the structure and biology of the virus being published. Sequencing data were also assembled and shared at rapid speed in publicly accessible repositories. This collaborative effort resulted in the accelera ..read more

The pharmaceutical industry is under huge pressure to address the high attrition rates in drug development. With around 90% of candidates failing during clinical development,1the process is not only long and risky, but also expensive for those involved. There are many reasons that promising drug candidates are discontinued, including poor pharmacokinetics, lack of clinical efficacy, and toxicity. These might only emerge late in the drug development pipeline – often many years after the initial research and development. Furthermore, nearly one third of drugs get withdrawn from the market post a ..read more

Immunotherapy has revolutionized cancer treatment and proved to be pivotal in the field of oncological research. Among several immunotherapeutic approaches that have been pursued, inhibiting the PD-1 (programmed cell death protein-1)/PD-L1 pathway has gained increased attention in recent years and shown exciting clinical success in a range of human cancers. Under normal circumstances, interactions between PD-1 and its ligand PD-L1 can halt or limit the immune system’s response to human cells and suppress T-cell inflammatory activity. This ensures that the immune system is only activated under ..read more

Since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak a global pandemic on March 11, 2020, researchers around the world have been working tirelessly to discover effective preventive treatments and therapeutic agents. Currently, the FDA has only approved one drug, Veklury (remdesivir), for treatment of COVID-19. However, the antiviral is only recommended for adults and certain pediatric patients who are sick enough to need hospitalization. This means that therapeutic agents that either fight or halt the spread of SARS-CoV-2 are still urgently needed. For c ..read more

Bispecific antibodies (BsAb) are promising biotherapeutics for an increasing range of diseases. There are currently seven BsAb approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and/or the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for a range of indications: Relapsed or refractory precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia Bleeding due to hemophilia A Non-small cell lung cancer Unresectable or metastatic uveal melanoma Wet (neovascular) age-related macular degeneration and diabetic macular edema Relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma Relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma Other than thes ..read more