HepaRG® Cells
HepaRG® Cells – an in vitro model for xenobiotic metabolism and toxicity studies
ECACC has signed a licensing agreement with Biopredic International for the production of HepaRG® cells at the ECACC laboratories, Porton Down, for distribution initially to the UK market. These cells have been shown to have an adult phenotype, CYP transporter and nuclear receptor expression comparable to that found in primary hepatocytes.
HepaRG® cells are provided to order as live pre-differentiated cultures in two formats:
Ready to use HepaRG® cell monolayers in
• 24 well plates
• 96 well plates
Traditionally primary human hepatocytes are used in drug screening, xenobiotic metabolism and toxicology assays to test new drugs in development. However, the availability of primary human hepatocytes generally relies on the death of a donor. The primary liver material taken from the deceased patient must be transferred without delay to the laboratory and used immediately. Work cannot be scheduled on a regular basis – rather it is timed by the availability of the cells. In addition, there is donor to donor variability. HepaRG® cells offer a solution to these problems. They are produced by inducing differentiation from a single hepatoma cell line ensuring batch to batch continuity and scheduled availability not possible with primary hepatocytes.
Extensive data has been produced to show the close phenotypic similarity of HepaRG® cells to primary hepatocytes. More and more applications are being found for HepaRG® cells, such applications include:
• In vitro model to predict drug metabolising cytochrome P450 enzyme induction of drugs in humans
• A model for toxicogenomic studies designed to analyse gene expression changes induced by a toxic chemical
• HepaRG® is the sole hepatoma cell line susceptible to Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and thereby provides a unique tool for HBV studies
• Lipid metabolism studies
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