Quantifying PD-L1 in tumor and immune cells may allow prediction of patient responses to novel PD-1 immunotherapies. Related Article: Flow Cytometry for Detecting Rare Cells Suspended cells are labeled with antibodies, stained with a cell cycle dye, and analyzed via flow cytometry to enumerate cells of interest, particularly PD-L1 and its expression at various stages in the tumor cell cycle.

OncoTect incorporates a non-enzymatic single cell tissue homogenization process, incellPREP™, for unfixed tumor biopsy samples. OncoTect iO represents a new family of multiparametric molecular analysis systems for immune-oncology suitable for clinical research, pharmaceutical discovery, and the study of malignancies expressing PD-L1, which include those of the bladder, head and neck, and prostate. OncoTect iO Lung Kit also quantifies tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs). Last year, IncellDx (Menlo Park, CA), which calls itself a “single-cell diagnostics company,” released the OncoTect iO® Lung Kit, a flow cytometry-based assay that quantifies programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) on tumor cells and immune cell subtypes in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) tissue samples. That’s one reason for using flow cytometry along with genomic testing in a clinical trial.” Solid tumor capability

“Flow cytometry provides a rapid measure of a patient’s response to drugs, including phenotypic responses that may not yet be apparent through DNA analysis.

Next-gen sequencing is extremely valuable in research settings, but flow cytometry has a faster turnaround time and is often less expensive. “Where pure genomic methods give you DNA or RNA levels from a bulk sample, flow cytometry quantifies specific phenotypes,” Wallar says. Downstream testing can be done to confirm, validate, or add to results from the flow cytometer. Once separated, cells may be tested further through any of 160+ additional assays for specific mutations, including by next-generation sequencing or any of the various PCR varieties. Assays may be directed toward diagnosis, response to drug treatment, or disease progression. The NeoGenomics flow cytometry platform identifies activation state of cells, expression of biomarkers of interest, and quantification of specific cell populations. “For clinical trials, we can adapt any of our tests on our clinical flow cytometry menu, but human studies often require customization that is, adding or removing markers to a flow cytometry panel,” says Gina Wallar, PhD, VP of pharma services sales. Myers, FL), which specializes in cancer genetics testing and related information services, offers the usual array of current-generation diagnostics, but the company’s strength is the ability to combine any of those assays with flow cytometry. The democratization of flow methods has added a new dimension-an extra level of specificity-to cell-based diagnostics, opening new paths for molecular techniques on individual cell types. Flow cytometry, like mass spectrometry 20 years ago, has a reputation for inaccessibility and user-unfriendliness.

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