BioIVT introduces high-purity Kupffer cells to support drug discovery and development for liver diseases and help predict adverse drug reactions

BioIVT, a leading provider of research models and services for drug and diagnostic development, today announced that it is adding high-purity Kupffer cells to its portfolio of human primary hepatic cells to support liver disease drug discovery and development and help predict adverse drug reactions.

Kupffer cells perform a scavenger role in the liver, removing small particles, senescent cells and cell debris. They also play an important role in the immune response to liver pathogens. Dysregulation of the Kupffer cell response contributes to chronic inflammation, leading to liver diseases such as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and liver fibrosis. NASH is a type of NAFLD, which also includes liver inflammation and liver cell damage.¹

BioIVT is already a leading provider of Kupffer-enriched non-parenchymal cells (NPCs); researchers use these cells in a variety of plated monocultures, co-cultures and liver microtissue configurations. As researchers are increasingly interested in evaluating the effects of Kupffer cells in predictive models, BioIVT developed the high purity product to provide them with additional options. High-purity Kupffer cells will be sold in vials containing a minimum of one million viable cells.

“Our staff’s technical expertise has enabled us to isolate high-purity Kupffer cells,” said BioIVT Senior Vice President, ADME-Tox Dr. Chris Black. “We now offer this valuable resource as a catalog product to drug discovery and development researchers for use in a variety of in-vitro and disease models, including mechanistic and screening assays, toxicity models, and for predicting inflammation-induced adverse drug reactions.”

BioIVT’s Kupffer cells complement its portfolio of biospecimens for NASH and NAFLD models, including human hepatocytes with a NAFLD activity score (NAS), peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), and other biofluids from donors with clinically defined NASH. To further support researchers in this field, BioIVT also sells the requisite media.

To isolate high-purity Kupffer cells, BioIVT uses an affinity purification method based on cell surface markers that preferentially attach to magnetic beads. Cell purity is assessed by CD68 positivity using flow cytometry. Cell function is assessed based on Interleukin 6 (IL-6) release in response to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and phagocytosis of fluorescent latex beads.

###

Additional information about BioIVT’s Kupffer cells and related products and services can be found at https://bioivt.com/kupffer-cells.

BioIVT will also be covering “Kupffer Cells: Methods & Applications” as part of its “Chalk Talk” webinar series. Research Scientist Karissa Cottier, PhD, will lead the session at 11 a.m. ET on May 29. Researchers who would like to participate can register here.

Reference

1. https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/liver-disease/nafld-nash/definition-facts

About BioIVT

BioIVT is a leading global provider of research models and value-added research services for drug discovery and development. We specialize in control and disease-state biospecimens including human and animal tissues, cell products, blood and other biofluids. Our unmatched portfolio of clinical specimens directly supports precision medicine research and the effort to improve patient outcomes by coupling comprehensive clinical data with donor samples. Our PHASEZERO^® Research Services team works collaboratively with clients to provide target and biomarker validation, phenotypic assays to characterize novel therapeutics, clinical assay development and in vitro hepatic modeling solutions. And as the premier supplier of hepatic products, including hepatocytes and subcellular fractions, BioIVT enables scientists to better understand the pharmacokinetics and drug metabolism of newly-discovered compounds and their effects on disease processes. By combining our technical expertise, exceptional customer service, and unparalleled access to biological specimens, BioIVT serves the research community as a trusted partner in elevating science. For more information, please visit http://www.bioivt.com or follow the company on Twitter @BioIVT.