ThawReady™ Cells: A Consumable Cell Format to Streamline and Standardize Bioassay Workflows

Cell-based in vitro bioassays are widely used in the biopharmaceutical and biotechnology industries to support the research, development, and validation of new products. More specifically, immortalized cell lines have been utilized for decades due to their ability to provide reproducibility and consistency—especially when sourced from authenticated suppliers—which can be challenging to achieve with more advanced in vitro models.^1,2 These cell lines play a critical role in drug discovery and development, facilitating high-throughput screening of large chemical libraries to identify potential drug candidates.^3-5 Additionally, they are employed in studies on drug mechanisms of action, cytotoxicity screening,^1,6 and evaluation of absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME).⁷ Immortalized cell lines are also used in potency assays and quality control testing.⁸ These bioassays provide early insights that can be used to guide subsequent in vitro or animal studies that are more expensive. 

Cell culture is a foundational technique for providing a controlled environment for developing in vitro assays by maintaining, growing, and assessing cells under conditions that mimic their natural, in vivo state.⁹ However, despite its utility, cell culture introduces several significant challenges and trade-offs. Cell culture is a resource-intensive and time-consuming process, requiring specialized equipment. Traditionally, cell-based bioassay workflows rely on cell culture at two key phases. First, it is employed to expand cellular material for generating cryopreserved cell banks, providing a consistent starting material for assays—this approach is typically favored over continuous culture. Second, after thawing a vial from the cell bank, cell culture is briefly used to recover cell functionality for the bioassay, a process that can take anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks.¹⁰ Additional challenges of cell culture include sterility issues, poor cell growth, and the potential for significant phenotypic changes in cells that ultimately impact the assay outcome or introduce variability.¹¹ The cumulative impact of recovery time across multiple assays along with the time, cost, and inherent risks of cell culture raises the question: “Is there a better way?”

To this effect, a standardized consumable cell product that can be directly used in an assay adds significant value. For this reason, the market for consumable cell products aimed at reducing non-assay-related cell culture is expanding, offering several formats. These include assay-specific engineered cell lines and kits, custom cryopreserved vials, or pre-plated cells. Each format comes with limitations, such as lack of versatility, long-term storage challenges, questionable quality and authentication, or the absence of a cryopreservation solution that minimizes post-thaw recovery time.

As one of the biggest sources of standardized biomaterials, ATCC is uniquely positioned to provide cell lines that can easily be traced back to the source for many in vitro assays. For that reason, the team of cryobiology experts at ATCC has developed a unique cryopreserved cellular format that can be directly used in performing endpoint assays without the need for pre-assay culture after thawing. The unique cryogenic storage media and preservation protocols used minimizes cellular injury and eliminates the need for post-thaw cell culture. Our cryopreserved vial format can directly replace internal cell bank generation, providing the same quality and authentication expected from ATCC. With storage requirements and stability consistent with typical cell banks, our product integrates seamlessly into existing workflows. To boost customer confidence, we offer detailed technical data sheets and application notes demonstrating immediate post-thaw usability in various cell-specific assays. Our ThawReady™ products save time, reduce costs, and streamline workflows while ensuring high-quality, authenticated cells for consistent, reproducible assay performance. Give them a try!

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ATCC's new ThawReady™ cells are ready within hours of thawing and are scalable for high-throughput assays.

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References

1. Allen DD, et al. Cell lines as in vitro models for drug screening and toxicity studies. Drug Dev Ind Pharm 31(8):757–768, 2005. PubMed: 16221610
2. Kaur G, Dufour JM. Cell lines: Valuable tools or useless artifacts. Spermatogenesis 2(1): 1-5, 2012. PubMed: 22553484
3. ATCC. Hight-throughput Screening. Accessed October 2024. https://www.atcc.org/the-science/drug-discovery/high-throughput-screening. 
4. Ling A, et al. More than fishing for a cure: The promises and pitfalls of high throughput cancer cell line screens. Pharmacol Ther 191: 178-189, 2018. PubMed: 29953899
5. Ovcharenko D, et al. High-throughput RNAi screening in vitro: from cell lines to primary cells. RNA 11(6): 985-993, 2005. PubMed: 15923380
6. ATCC. Toxicology. Accessed October 2024. https://www.atcc.org/cell-products/applications/toxicology#t=productTab&numberOfResults=24
7. Chunduri V, Maddi S. Role of in vitro two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) cell culture systems for ADME-Tox screening in drug discovery and development: a comprehensive review. ADMET DMPK 11(1): 1-32, 2022. PubMed: 36778905
8. Capelli C, et al. Potency assays and biomarkers for cell-based advanced therapy medicinal products. Front Immunol 14: 1186224, 2023. PubMed: 37359560
9. ATCC. Culturing Cells. Accessed October 2024. https://www.atcc.org/the-science/culturing-cells
10. Uhrig M, Ezquer F, Ezquer M. Improving Cell Recovery: Freezing and Thawing Optimization of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells. Cells 11(5): 799, 2022. PubMed: 35269421
11. Weiskirchen S, et al. A Beginner's Guide to Cell Culture: Practical Advice for Preventing Needless Problems. Cells 12(5): 682, 2023. PubMed: 36899818