Overview

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have revolutionized drug discovery and toxicology studies by enabling the development of human-relevant, patient-specific cell models. These advanced models significantly enhance the predictive accuracy of drug efficacy and safety assessments compared to traditional animal models and immortalized cell lines.

Why Use iPSCs in Drug Discovery and Toxicology?

iPSCs can differentiate into virtually any human cell type, including hepatocytes, cardiomyocytes, and neuronal cells, providing biologically relevant systems for evaluating therapeutic candidates. Their use in drug discovery reduces reliance on animal models, lowers costs, improves scalability, and increases the predictive power of preclinical studies, facilitating a smoother transition to clinical trials.

Current Challenges

Traditional methods for drug screening and toxicity testing often rely on animal models or immortalized cell lines, which lack predictive accuracy and physiological relevance to human biology. Variability in iPSC culture conditions and differentiation protocols can also hinder reproducibility, while high costs associated with specialized media and cell culture reagents present additional barriers.

How Defined Bioscience Can Help

Defined Bioscience offers advanced, serum-free, defined media formulations tailored to support consistent and reproducible iPSC maintenance and differentiation. Our HiDef-B8 medium and Ready-CEPT supplement significantly improve the efficiency and reliability of generating functional cell models, reducing variability, and enabling robust, scalable drug screening and toxicological assessments.

Relevant Application Notes

Defined Bioscience has curated application notes specifically supporting robust drug discovery and toxicology workflows:

• Comparative Analysis of 2D and 3D Differentiation Approaches for iPSC-Derived Neural Cells: Demonstrates the effectiveness of HiDef-B8 in generating iPSCs upstream of neural models, suitable for high-throughput screening of neurotoxic compounds and therapeutic candidates.
• Isolating Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Using WOLF G2 Cell Sorter: Highlights how gentle sorting of iPSCs with surface markers using the WOLF G2 enhances purity and viability, crucial for reliable downstream drug screening assays.
  
  

Key Defined Bioscience Products for Drug Discovery and Toxicology

• HiDef-B8: Complete, serum-free, defined media ideal for maintaining pluripotency and efficient differentiation.
  
  
• Ready-CEPT: Optimized supplement promoting enhanced viability and functional capability in various cell types.
  
  
• HiDef PBS/EDTA: Defined phosphate-buffered saline solution for gentle cell dissociation.
  
  
• HiDef N-2: Defined neural supplement to support robust neural differentiation.
  
  
• HiDef-ITS: Defined insulin-transferrin-selenium supplement to enhance proliferation efficiency and cell viability.
  
  

Contact and Collaboration Opportunities

Defined Bioscience encourages collaboration with researchers and industry professionals engaged in drug discovery and toxicology studies. Our experts provide technical support, customized protocol optimization, and troubleshooting assistance.

Email: info@definedbioscience.com

By utilizing Defined Bioscience’s specialized media and reagents, researchers can substantially enhance the predictive reliability of their drug discovery and toxicology models, accelerating the path from bench to bedside.