Cytotoxicity Testing

Cytotoxicity Testing Services 

Cytotoxicity tests are those screening tests that are performed to check a material’s compatibility with living tissues. They are performed in vitro (in glass) to observe the cell growth, reproduction, and morphological effects by medical devices. These tests are considered pilot tests, performed first to check the material’s compatibility, before actually implementing it with living organisms, which are in vivo (in living organisms) tests. 

Cytotoxicity tests are really important, as they are used to check for any kind of toxicity in medical devices. Thus, these tests prevent animals from being exposed to toxicity during implantation. There are two types of cytotoxicity tests, namely: 

• Qualitative Cytotoxicity Tests – This includes the direct contact procedure, agar diffusion assay, and MEM elution assay.

• Quantitative Cytotoxicity Tests – This includes MTT assay.

Video 01: Cytotoxicity Assays

Common Uses of Cytotoxicity Tests: 

• It is used for toxicity identification in in vitro (in glass) tests. 
• It is used for cells in culture in laboratories. 

Advantages of Cytotoxicity Tests:

• Ability to find toxicity before performing in vivo (in living organisms) tests.
• It is a speedy method.
• It does not cost much to perform a cytotoxicity test.

Limitations of Cytotoxicity Tests: 

• The toxic effects can often get ignored in direct tests.
• There can be fluorescent interference of test compounds. 

Industrial Applications of Cytotoxicity tests:

• It is widely used in pharmaceutical industries.
• It is also used as a fundamental tool for drug discovery processes.