ATCC to Showcase Physiologically Relevant Cell Models for Cancer Research at American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 

ATCC, the premier global biological materials resource and standards organization, and leading, developer and supplier of authenticated cells and advanced cell models, will showcase its expanded portfolio of cancer research tools at the upcoming annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR). This meeting will take place April 14-18 at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL.

ATCC will feature uniquely physiologically relevant isogenic cell lines that contain genetic alterations introduced via CRISPR/Cas9 genome-editing technology. These disease-relevant alterations are specifically designed to enable cancer researchers to investigate key mutations related to cancer genesis and progression for potential use for identifying personalized treatment regimens.

“To support the development of new cancer drugs, ATCC scientists continue to develop in vitro cancer models that meet today’s research challenges of being more predictive and more versatile, enabling culture in both 2-D and 3-D formats,” said Dr. Raymond Cypess, ATCC Chairman and CEO. “The AACR annual meeting represents a great opportunity for ATCC to collaborate with the cancer research community and explore innovations in cancer research.”

In addition to the CRISPR/Cas9-edited cell lines, ATCC will display well-characterized primary cells, cancer cell panels, and authenticated cell models — such as hTERT-immortalized primary cells and other genetically modified cells — meeting a wide variety of cancer research needs.

On April 14th, Dr. Maryellen de Mars, Vice President, Standards Resource Center, ATCC will participate in the Cancer Genomic Reference Samples — Sequencing Consortium Results and Beyond session during one of several education workshops. The consortium will provide a progress update on the FDA-led Sequencing Quality Control Phase II (SEQC2). Dr. de Mars will discuss the pre-analytical aspects of the ATCC cell lines used for this analysis. The Consortium is comprised of 60+ institutions and 160+ scientists that have joined to characterize and compare both a breast cancer and a normal cell line for the purpose of defining high confidence mutation cells. These reference cells will serve as controls for somatic mutation-based diagnostic tests.

In addition to its booth presence in the AACR exhibit hall, ATCC subject matter experts will present a number of poster demonstrations including a unique in vitro model for cancer metastasis research.

ATCC is a premier global biological materials and information resource and standards organization and the leading developer and supplier of authenticated cell lines, microorganisms, and associated data for academia, industry, and government. With a history of scientific contributions spanning nearly a century, ATCC offers an unmatched combination of being the world’s largest and most diverse collection of biological reference materials and data, and is a mission-driven, trusted partner that supports and encourages scientific collaboration. ATCC products, services, partnerships, and people provide the global scientific community with credible, advanced, model systems to support complex research and innovations in basic science, drug discovery, translational medicine, and public health. ATCC is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with headquarters in Manassas, Virginia, and a research and technology center of excellence in Gaithersburg, Maryland. 

Contact: Kim Testa, senior director, Corporate Communications & Public Affairs, ATCC, [email protected]