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A Flow Cytometry-Based Cytotoxicity Assay for the Assessment of Human NK Cell Activity
Published on: August 9, 2017
Development of a K562 cell-based assay for screening anticancer agents.
1National Center for Drug Screening, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China.
Acta Pharmacologica Sinica
|December 26, 2001
Summary
A new high-throughput screening assay using K562 leukemia cells was developed. This efficient method identified several promising anticancer compounds for further investigation.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Cell Biology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Leukemia, specifically chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), remains a significant health concern.
- Effective high-throughput screening (HTS) assays are crucial for identifying novel therapeutic agents.
- The K562 cell line is a well-established model for leukemia research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To establish a K562 cell line-based assay for high-throughput screening of potential anticancer compounds.
- To optimize conditions for evaluating compound effects on K562 cell proliferation.
- To identify novel inhibitors of leukemia cell growth.
Main Methods:
- Development of a 96-well plate assay utilizing the K562 leukemia cell line.
- Monitoring of cell proliferation using the MTS/PMS assay.
- Optimization of compound screening conditions and subsequent confirmation of active compounds.
Main Results:
- Screening of 800 small organic compounds identified 11 with >80% inhibitory activity at 5 mg/L.
- Nine of these compounds were confirmed in subsequent multi-concentration testing.
- The most potent compound exhibited an IC50 of 170 nmol/L, with 7 compounds showing IC50 < 10 µmol/L.
Conclusions:
- The developed K562 cell-based assay is fast, economical, effective, and practical.
- This HTS method is suitable for identifying potential therapeutic agents for leukemia.
- The assay facilitates the discovery of novel anticancer drug candidates.

