Not All Spots are Created Equal: Maximizing Data Quality in ELISpot Bio-Assays Through Stepwise Process Validation

The recent rise to prominence of clinically beneficial immune-based therapies, particularly for cancer patients, has put critical emphasis on the need for validated bio-assays measuring functional correlates of the immune response. The ELISpot assay is one the most commonly used immune-monitoring assays for basic and translational research in immunology, enabling the detection of rare cells and RNA transcripts. The assay represents an ideal platform for immuno-biomarker assessment, particularly in vaccine development, immune-oncology therapeutics, and diagnostics. However, performance characteristics can be greatly influenced by a variety of factors, including sample handling/processing, cell recovery and viability post-cryopreservation, operator technique/execution, and the use of manual or automated spot enumeration and analysis. In this webinar, we will address the technical and methodological requirements for the reliable use of ELISpot assays, introduce important quality control measures, discuss essential assay qualification parameters, and provide advice for proper interpretation of results obtained by automated ELISpot imaging systems....