Author: Eagle Biosciences

What is it AgarSqueezer intended for?

AgarSqueezer is a microscope slide chamber equipped with a molded agar-based compression system. Use it to assess cell response to short and long-term mechanical confinement within a physiological rigidity range.

It is very helpful if you want to analyze how your cells will react if you squeeze them for a prolonged period. Or if you want to study how mechanical confinement affects drug cell resistance. And if you want to perform immunostaining in situ.

Kit Description:

You can choose among 2 kits:

• The “1 AgarSqueezer kit” contains 1 AgarSqueezer device
• The “2 AgarSqueezers kit” contains 2 AgarSqueezers devices.

In addition to the device, each kit contains also:

• 1 x insert to hold up to 2 AgarSqueezers on the microscope stage
• 1 x 16G flat cut needle to make holes in the agar gel, facilitating diffusion of culture medium or drugs during the experiment
• 1 x 20G flat cut needle (same)

For users who also need a wafer to mold agarose, contact us to learn about the four different heights we offer.

Features

1. Tunable stiffness in a physiological range [1-150] kPa – Use of agarose as a cheap and biocompatible polymer.
2. Open access to the reservoir – Possibility to add drugs, and reagents. Easy medium renewal.
3. Autoclavable and reusable systems.
4. Compatibility with multiple microscopy techniques – Confocal, spinning, super-resolution. Open access for microscope objectives. Use of optical glass coverslip to make cells grow.
5. Easy to recover coverslip with cells for subsequent molecular analysis – FACS, qPCR, Western-Blot, Immunoflourescence (possible in situ).
6. Long-term analysis of the cell adaptation to confinement – Up to several days, for time-lapse studies.
7. Study of the specific impact of mechanical loads on the biology of cells – Gas permeability of the system allows to get rid of the hypoxia conditions.
8. Easy to assemble and disassemble the system

For more information about this product or any others from the Microscopy line, contact us here.

Eagle Biosciences is excited to announce the newest product series for Host Cell Protein Detection!

Host cell proteins (HCPs) are a major class of impurities produced during biotherapeutic manufacturing. They must be removed from the final drug product to both assure patient safety and maintain drug efficacy. Our wide range of Host Cell Protein Detection Kits are easy to use and highly sensitive.

What are HCPs and why must they be removed from biologic drugs?

HCPs are proteins produced or encoded by the host organisms used to produce recombinant therapeutic proteins. Genetic engineering allows the host organism cells to be transformed to produce a protein of interest. During the recombinant protein production, host cells also coproduce proteins related to the normal cell functions such structural proteins, as well as proteins required for normal cellular growth and function, and vary in both number and concentration depending on the chosen host species and the manufacturing process being used. In general, apart from the therapeutic protein of interest, all endogenous proteins co-expressed by the host cells are called host-cell proteins.

Why must HCPs be removed from biologic drugs?

HCPs must be removed from the final biotherapeutic product to avoid adverse effects. Almost all HCPs carry safety risks as foreign proteins due to the potential to elicit immune response in humans (e.g, cytokine storm). In addition, some HCPs can also act to enhance the immune response to a drug product. Certain HCPs can also affect drug product stability and efficacy if not adequately removed or inactivated.

How are HCPs detected?

ELISAs are widely used for detecting HCPs, where they are generally configured in a sandwich assay format for improved specificity. In this scenario, a microplate-bound antibody is used for analyte capture, then a second analyte-specific antibody (that binds a different epitope on the target molecule) is added to enable detection. By incorporating a reference standard (e.g., a purified protein) into the assay design, it is possible to quantify the analyte of interest and confirm that its concentration meets regulatory requirements. Advantages of ELISA are that it is sensitive and compatible with high sample throughput – key considerations for biopharmaceutical manufacturing.

If you have any questions about these products or any of our other offerings, contact us here.

What is it SpheroRuler intended for?

SpheroRuler is a monodispersed suspension of 1µm diameter spheres coated with 647-fluorophores giving a stable blinking in SMLM microscopy. Their consistent size and geometry make them very practical and reliable standards to assess the accuracy of your x-y or z measurements, 3D reconstruction methods or your image quality. Monodispersed and immobile in solution, they can also be used as rulers, for drift correction or as guides to help localize features on your biological samples.

SpheroRuler is great for dSTORM calibration experiments because you can use it on your preferred support and buffer. And because you get confident with the new biological structure to image. SpheroRuler also produces simple shapes that are easy to study when you are a dSTORM beginner!

Features

1. Stable Blinking – Suited for use in SMLM microscopy
2. Consistent Size – Thoroughly characterized by electron microscopy
3. Spherical geometry – with sharp and thin edges
4. Immobile – Suitable for drift correction applications
5. Bio-compatible – Resuspended in an aqueous buffer and usable along biological samples such as cells or tissue sections
6. Easy-to-Spot – A high fluorescence intensity for practical use as demo or training tools

For more information about this product or any others from the Microscopy line, contact us here.