NU 2005-006
Inventor
Anjen Chen*
Short Description
New method for detecting and quantitating cellular mobility
Abstract
Northwestern researchers have developed a scalable method for sorting mammalian cells based on mobility. Existing methods for studying cell mobility, such as transwells and wound healing assays, are limited due to the long time periods required for these studies. Further, results of these assays are confounded by cell division, and noted mobility phenotypes can only be related to cell populations, not individual cells. Prof. Chen's laboratory has developed a method that utilizes fluorescently labeled microbeads as a substrate upon which cells are seeded. As the cells move over this surface, they ingest beads whose fluorescence can be quantified and correlated with each cell's mobility phenotype. This fluorescence-based method allows for detection and quantification of mobility of either individual cells or an entire population, and has been successfully used with various cell types. In addition, the intensity of the fluorescent signal can be used to isolate populations of cells exhibiting similar levels of mobility using flow cytometry techniques. This tool may provide a unique high way to identify and study aberrant motility phenotypes related to cancer and development in a high throughput manner.
Applications
Advantages
Publications
Windler-Hart S, Chen K, Chen A (2005) A cell behavior screen: identification, sorting and enrichment of cells based on motility, BMC Cell Biology. 6: 14
IP Status
Issued US patent number 7,960,135