Predictive Oncology Partners with Switzerland-Based Tecan Group Ltd. to Expand High-Throughput Drug Screening to Include Human Tumor Spheroids Using Automated Imaging and 3D Analysis
Study used Predictive Oncology’s vast biobank of cryopreserved live cell tumor specimens for the production and testing of primary patient tumor spheroids
Results presented at the 2025 Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS)
PITTSBURGH, Feb. 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Predictive Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ: POAI), a leader in AI-driven drug discovery and biologics, today announced that positive results from an ongoing study in collaboration with Switzerland-based Tecan, Ltd. were recently presented at the 2025 Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS) International Conference & Exhibition, which was held January 25-29, 2025, in San Diego, CA.
Cancer research increasingly relies on patient-derived tumor models (PDTMs), such as patient-derived tumor spheroids (PDTS), to develop personalized therapies as they offer a more physiologically relevant system, preserving the morphology, cellular complexity, and microenvironment of corresponding tissues. A key challenge of utilizing PDTS is the accessibility and scalability of primary tumor cells. The use of cryopreserved dissociated tumor cells (DTCs) which are single cell suspensions dissociated from solid tumors addresses this limitation, and offers a robust method to store and culture viable DTCs for research.
Optimized growth conditions and drug treatment protocols were established for tumor models derived from cryopreserved DTCs of different cancer types. 3D models are closer to in vivo physiological conditions than 2D models, and as expected, differences in response to drug dosing are observed.
“The capability to obtain a tumor specimen and monitor its growth and drug response as it transitions from a 2D cell culture to cryopreservation and then to a 3D cell culture significantly enhances the relevance and availability of our samples for high-throughput drug discovery, personalized medicine, and biomarker discovery,” said Dr. Arlette Uihlein, Senior Vice President of Translational Medicine and Drug Discovery and Medical Director at Predictive Oncology. “The breast, colon and ovary samples used to generate primary patient spheroids were selected from the Predictive Oncology biobank. All samples were chosen based on known drug response data indicating responsiveness to the clinically relevant compounds used in this study.”
The high throughput screening [HTS] market is projected to reach $69.5 billion by 2032, reflecting a CAGR of 12.18%, . There is a growing adoption of 3D cell cultures and organoids, which provide more physiologically relevant models for screening, enhancing the predictive power of HTS assays.
A major obstacle to the use of patient-derived tumor spheroids in research and drug development is the limited accessibility and scalability of primary tumor cells. This challenge is mitigated by the utilization of cryopreserved dissociated tumor cells (DTCs), which represent a scalable resource for experiments with viable primary tumor material.
“This process requires precise monitoring and characterization, including multiple imaging techniques and viability assessments to evaluate tumor growth and drug response. The studies presented in this poster summarize recent developments in the use of the POAI biobank for optimizing the use of DTCs, by multiplexing label-free artificial intelligence based automated analysis of tumor spheroids over time with real-time drug dose response,” said Eric Lutsch, Application Scientist at Tecan, Austria. “The spheroids were evaluated using the Tecan SparkCyto instrument and 3DAI software capabilities.”
About Tecan
Tecan () improves people’s lives and health by empowering customers to scale healthcare innovation globally from life science to the clinic. Tecan is a pioneer and global leader in laboratory automation. As an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), Tecan is also a leader in developing and manufacturing OEM instruments, components and medical devices that are then distributed by partner companies. Founded in Switzerland in 1980, the company has more than 3,500 employees, with manufacturing, research and development sites in Europe, North America and Asia, and maintains a sales and service network in over 70 countries. In 2023, Tecan generated sales of CHF 1,074 million (USD 1,194 million; EUR 1,108 million). Registered shares of Tecan Group are traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange (TECN; ISIN CH0012100191).
About Predictive Oncology
Predictive Oncology is on the cutting edge of the rapidly growing use of artificial intelligence and machine learning to expedite early drug discovery and enable drug development for the benefit of cancer patients worldwide. The company’s scientifically validated AI platform, PEDAL, is able to predict with 92% accuracy if a tumor sample will respond to a certain drug compound, allowing for a more informed selection of drug/tumor type combinations for subsequent in-vitro testing. Together with the company’s vast biobank of more than 150,000 assay-capable heterogenous human tumor samples, Predictive Oncology offers its academic and industry partners one of the industry’s broadest AI-based drug discovery solutions, further complimented by its wholly owned CLIA laboratory facility. Predictive Oncology is headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA.
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