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Products and Contract Services

Optical Imaging Studies


In vivo Bioluminescent/Fluorescent Imaging Platform

In addition to being inherently low throughput, traditional animal modeling techniques are marginally predictive of success in human clinical trials, and thus, a high failure rate in drug development persists. New technologies such as Caliper’s non-invasive IVIS imaging instrument have been developed to overcome the bottlenecks in animal testing.

The IVIS imaging system utilizes the light emitted by a bioluminescent or fluorescent molecule expressed in a live organism, and analyzes the source and strength of that bioluminescent or fluorescent signal, allowing extensive longitudinal modeling in the same live animal. Using the IVIS platform, researchers can view an entire animal or focus on one organ or system for added detail and sensitivity. This real-time in vivo imaging instrument enables us to identify disease pathways, study mechanisms of action, and evaluate and monitor the effects of drug compounds on disease progression in live animals. Real-time in vivo imaging offers the advantage of quantifying tumor burden in whole mouse, non-invasively tracking the progression of cellular growth and/or monitoring the expression of a reporter gene when challenged in a disease model or with a compound. Through CDAS, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies have access to this proprietary patented technology and to a wide range of animal imaging services.


Benefits of IVIS Imaging Technology

Real-time in vivo, non-invasive imaging is designed to provide:

  • Higher Throughput - Caliper’s proprietary imaging technology offers exceptional sensitivity with the detection of fluorescent and bioluminescent signals emitted by only a few cells in a live animal. As such, fewer test animals and shorter timelines are required as compared to conventional animal testing paradigms, thus allowing more compounds to be evaluated for efficacy or deleterious side effects.
  • Higher Data Content and Quality - Temporal and spatial data can be collected from the same animal over multiple time points (i.e. longitudinal studies). In addition, the response to treatment can be assessed without the need for measuring circulating markers or terminal histological assessments. As a consequence, this approach decreases the statistical error inherent in conventional methodologies, while improving data quality.
  • More Predictive Animal Models  - By collecting data from intact, live animals, more accurate predictions can be made earlier in preclinical development process and this may help to identify those drug candidates which will perform better in human clinical trials.