Training_courses

DIGITAL IMAGING WITH AUTOMATED MICROSCOPY SYSTEMS: A GUIDE TO THEIR USE IN DRUG DISCOVERY
Instructor: Susan Catalano, Ph.D., President, Drug Discovery Imaging

COURSE DESCRIPTION_______________________________________________________________
This course is designed to benefit managers, screening professionals and bench scientists interested in implementation or optimization of automated microscopy systems. This course will 1) help you understand image processing concepts that are relevant to digital imaging-based assay formats and automated microscopy systems, 2) help you navigate the practical aspects of facility setup/scale-up and choice of instrumentation, 3) provide guidelines for assay development and statistical performance evaluation, 4) outline the major classes of digital imaging-based assays and present detailed case studies of specific assays and their use in screening.

BENEFITS OF ATTENDING____________________________________________________________
Upon completion of this course you will….
1) understand basic image processing concepts and how they are used to build digital-imaging based assays,
2) learn about the resource requirements needed to implement digital imaging-based assays,
3) gain knowledge of the practical methods that are critical to making the analysis of cell-based assays successful with automated microscopy systems.

COURSE AGENDA____________________________________________________________________
Introduction and overview
- What higher throughput digital imaging can mean for the drug discovery operation
Basic image processing
- What you need to know to do digital-image based assays
Basic types of high throughput systems
- Microplate-based systems impacting screening and target identification/validation and lead identification/profiling
- Slide-based systems impacting diagnostic/biomarker discovery and toxicology assessments
Review of current commercially available instrumentation
- Issues associated with scale-up
- Instrument calibration procedures
- Future instrumentation in development
Assembling the Information-handling Infrastructure
- Integrating with existing data analysis methods and databases across the enterprise
- Workflow management
- Data analysis methods
- Information storage and retrieval
- Performance tracking
- Data standards
- Regulatory compliance: Future Impact of 21 CFR Part 11
Laboratory methods: cell-based assays
- Standardization of cell culture conditions
- Automation of plate preparation
Laboratory methods: tissue samples
- Immunohistochemistry methodology
- Automation instrumentation and protocols
Cell-based Assays
- Assay categories
- Determining assay suitability for a digital imaging format
- Assay development timelines
- Assay Design considerations
- Assay validation
- Performance assessment

Digital imaging-based assay formats screened on automated microscopy systems are becoming increasingly common in the drug discovery environment. By allowing various measurements of multiple molecular markers to be taken simultaneously within each cell, the complexity of cell-based assays can be scaled. This increase in information per assay allows digital imaging to proceed faster (‘two assays for the price of one’). The availability of high throughput instrumentation has enabled secondary and, increasingly, primary screens of compound libraries to be executed in a digital-imaging format. At the same time, digital image-based analysis of tissue samples promises to revolutionize diagnostics, biomarker discovery and toxicology assessments. While digital imaging formats promise to impact the entire early stage drug discovery process, increasing pressure to find drugs means new technologies must be carefully evaluated and utilized. A strong background in basic principles and practical information can ensure that digital-imaging formats are implemented and executed rapidly, efficiently and effectively.