Assay Development

For UHTS, we develop in vitro biological assays that are suitable for screening our 5.5 million ECLiPS compound collection in 1536-well format. This includes both cell-based and biochemical assays designed to measure ligand binding, enzymatic activity, and cell function. Ideal UHTS detection technologies include, but are not limited to, fluorescence, fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), time-resolved fluorescence (TRF), homogeneous time-resolved fluorescence (HTRF or TR-TRET), absorbance, luminescence, and AlphaScreen®. Screening assays can be configured with either kinetic or endpoint detection.

Our biology team also develops assays for compound profiling at the hit-to-lead and lead optimization stage. These assays, typically in low-volume 384-well format, allow for the implementation of a fully-integrated critical path that extends beyond primary compound testing to include selectivity and ortholog profiling.

VENENUM Biodesign utilizes state-of-the-art liquid handling and detection technology, allowing optimization of assays with high reproducibility and sensitivity. We establish CVs, z-factors, and work with reference compounds to ensure assay quality. We employ a combination of custom microliter liquid handlers along with commercial instruments such as the JANUS, Multidrop Combi, and ATS-100 acoustic dispenser. Our detection instrumentation includes Envisions, ViewLux, and FLiPR-Tetra multimode plate readers.