Clonogenic assay is otherwise also referred to as a “colony formation,” [1] this pertains to an in vitro process or survival analysis in order to determine a single cell’s capability to form a specific colony [2].
A colony refers to fifty cells or more. This process is particularly useful in analyzing the effects of ionization and cytotoxic agents upon the mortality of cell reproduction in culture mediums. Apparently, only a fraction of seeded cells is capable of forming colonies.[3]
A clonogenic assay, also known as a colony formation assay, is a technique used to study the ability of a single cell to grow into a colony. The assay assesses cells’ proliferative capacity and capability to retain this capacity after being subjected to external factors such as radiation or drugs. It’s fundamental in cell biology, oncology, and radiation biology.
When performing a clonogenic assay with suspension cells, there are specific challenges and considerations to keep in mind:
In summary, while clonogenic assays are traditionally associated with adherent cells, they can be adapted for suspension cells using semi-solid media. This adaptation allows researchers to assess the clonogenic potential of hematopoietic cells, leukemia cells, and other suspension cell types, providing valuable insights into their biology and treatment response.
[1] ^ Fedr, Radek, Zuzana Pernicová, Eva Slabáková, Nicol Straková, Jan Bouchal, Michal Grepl, Alois Kozubík, and Karel Souček. 2013. Automatic cell cloning assay for determining the clonogenic capacity of cancer and cancer stem-like cells. Cytometry. Part A : the journal of the International Society for Analytical Cytology, no. 5 (February 28). doi:10.1002/cyto.a.22273. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23450810
[2] ^ Hauser, Ross A, and Amos Orlofsky. 2013. Regenerative injection therapy with whole bone marrow aspirate for degenerative joint disease: a case series. Clinical medicine insights. Arthritis and musculoskeletal disorders (September 4). doi:10.4137/CMAMD.S10951. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24046512
[3] ^ Nahas, Shareef A, Robert Davies, Francesca Fike, Kotoka Nakamura, Liutao Du, Refik Kayali, Nathan T Martin, Patrick Concannon, and Richard A Gatti. 2011. Comprehensive profiling of radiosensitive human cell lines with DNA damage response assays identifies the neutral comet assay as a potential surrogate for clonogenic survival. Radiation research, no. 2 (September 30). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21962002
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