Applications of flow cytometry in cellular pharmacology

Cellular pharmacology is defined as the study of drug effects on various cell functions. Flow cytometry enriches cellular pharmacology by the following possibilities for efficient analysis. Firstly, the determination of toxic concentrations can be approached by the assessment of cell viability. However, due to the existence of many fluorescent DNA probes, most studies are devoted to the investigation of products acting on cell division, particularly in the area of antineoplastic drugs. The effects of drugs on respiration can be approached by analysis of mitochondrial activities. On the other hand, the studies of drug actions on cell differentiation functions have been started using antisera or monoclonal antibodies to cell-specific proteins such as collagen and keratin. Flow cytometry appears to be more and more important in the progress of cellular toxicology and pharmacology.