Cell Screening Center UMC Utrecht

The Cell Screening Core, (CSC), is a well-established center for high throughput screening. The Core is a center of excellence for High Content Screening, (HCS). This powerful technology combines the automation of cell-based morphological assays with automated microscopy, automated image analysis, and advanced data mining techniques. It increases the scientists chances of finding interesting, relevant hits from screens and can give an early insight into mechanism of action. We have developed a proprietary software tool for the mining of HCS datasets called HC StratoMineR. The addition of this software platform has established the CSC as the only academic center in the Netherlands that can offer a complete fully automated HCS service.

We run screens for wide variety of applications drug target discovery, and chemical biology/drug discovery. The CSC can screen libraries of chemicals, siRNAs, miRNAs and other reagents. The center has the required laboratory facilities, robotics, bioinformatics infrastructure and expertise to successfully run fully automated high throughput chemical biology and functional genomics screens in 96- or 384-well plates. As well as HCS we can also run traditional HTS projects. We routinely run assays using 2D cell culture models but 3D models can also be run. In collaboration with the Bos & Clevers groups at the UMCU & Hubrecht Institute we have developed technologies for the automation of cancer organoid screening.

The Center offers a highly personalized, collaborative service in which we work closely with our clients to help them to achieve their goals, with high levels of quality and affordable costs. The CSC was established by Dr. David Egan who has extensive experience in automated screening in academia and the pharmaceuticals industry. The CSC can therefore offer clients access to a combination of industrial experience with the support of academic knowledge and innovation.

The CSC is located on the campus of the University Medical Center Utrecht and is embedded within the UMCU Department of Cell Biology. The department has an excellent international reputation in the field of cell biology and is an integrated academic center for fundamental and translational research.

The Center operates on a ‘technology hotel’ model. Assay development and validation is carried out by the project team in consultation with the CSC. The CSC then develops and validates protocols so that assays can be run in an automated fashion. The screen is run on the CSC robotics platform by the project team, with the appropriate level of oversight and assistance from CSC staff. The Center is open to academic research groups from throughout the Netherlands.