Company News
Introducing the ECIS 8Z
Applied BioPhysics is pleased to start the New Year by introducing our new "ECIS 8Z" instrument priced under $10,000.
The ECIS8Z is the latest addition to our instrument line. The 8Z is limited to eight wells and simple impedance, where measurements can be performed at any of eight preset AC frequencies.
The system comes equipped with the ability to carry out automated wound healing assays to measure cell migration and can drive an optional pump for those interested in studying the behavior of cells under shear stress or perfused conditions.
This a turn-key system complete with a PC running ECIS software for data acquisition and analysis. Priced below $10,000, the 8Z is a good choice for those with limited capital equipment budgets and is an affordable ECIS introduction for laboratories who are considering if cell-based impedance measurements can improve or extend their research efforts.
We are pleased to announce the launch of our new and improved website!
It offers many of the same great features as the previous site with a more user-friendly layout as well as an updated look and expanded product description.The homepage welcomes visitors with bold new colors and a clean uncluttered design. The featured content is centered on the company's mission to bring researchers innovative technology with guaranteed satisfaction through manufacturing and person to person communication.
The new website is easier to use and will greatly improve the experience of existing ECIS users and new customers. Coming in 2011 will be an "online cultureware store" offering customers the convenience to purchase arrays online.
Save The Date! Join us in Regensburg, Germany August 10 - 12, 2011 
Applied BioPhysics and ibidi GmbH are proud to sponsor a symposium on Impedance Based Cellular Assays (IBCA) 2011 in Regensburg, Germany. Following the success of ECIS 2009 in Regensburg and the ECIS Users Meeting 2010 in Rensselaerville, NY, the IBCA 2011 will bring together researchers in the life sciences using and developing impedance-based methods. The meeting will take place August 11-12, 2011 at the University of Regensburg. A pre-meeting workshop will be presented by Applied BioPhysics on August 10, 2011.
For more information visit www.ibca2011.net or send an email to: info@ibca2011.net
ECIS Early Career Grant
Applied BioPhysics would like to help young scientists obtain funding. The ECIS mini-grant is aimed at early career scientists who are applying for their first RO1 grant. For a researcher wanting to use ECIS technology to achieve their research goals, Applied BioPhysics will provide an ECIS instrument, ECIS arrays, and consultation in order to generate preliminary data to support the applicant's RO1 proposal. Interested scientists should submit their research plan with a cover letter explaining how ECIS technology can be used to achieve their specific objectives. Applied BioPhysics will evaluate proposals based on scientific merit, suitability with ECIS technology and novelty.
To apply please send a resume, RO1 research plan and cover letter to Christian Renken at renken@biophysics.com.
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ECIS Software
The latest version of ECIS software is v1.2.65 which can be downloaded from Help | Check for Updates, or: http://www.biophysics.com/software/ECIS_Software_v1_2_65.msi
Software Tips
Append Datasets
If an experiment is interrupted and must be restarted as a new file, it is possible to join the two files using the 'Append Dataset' command from the 'Edit' menu. Select the first (earlier) file from the Data Manager, then 'Append Dataset' and select the second (later) file to be appended. The datasets must have the same electrodes and experiment type. The time points for the second dataset will be offset with respect to the start time of the first dataset. This process can be repeated for multiple datasets. To save the resulting dataset, go to File | Export data | All data and select the .ABP file format.
Combine Datasets
Multiple 8 well or 16 well datasets can be easily compared on 1 graph using the 'Combine datasets' command from the 'Edit' menu. The datasets will transform into a 96 well format, and up to 6 datasets can be combined. Each 8 well array will appear as one column in the Well Configuration. The datasets should have the same experiment type and time point interval. The original data is unchanged, and the new dataset can be saved as described above.
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ECIS Webinar Schedule 2010
ECIS application webinars review the topics listed below in 20 to 30 minute, web-based, interactive seminars presented by Applied BioPhysics president and co-founder, Dr. Charles Keese.
All webinars are held at 11:00am EST. To register for a webinar, please go to: https://appliedbiophysics.webex.com and scroll to the webinar date of interest.
ECIS Theory - 11:00 AM EST, January 11, 2011
Cell Invasion / Extravasation Assays - 11:00 AM EST, January 25, 2011Automated Cell Migration - 11:00 AM EST, February 8, 2011 Barrier Function Assays - 11:00 AM EST, February 22, 2011 Real-time Electroporation and Monitoring - 11:00 AM EDST, March 15, 2011 Cell Attachment and Spreading Measurements - 11:00 AM EDST, March 29, 2011 Signal Transduction Assays - 11:00 AM EDST, April 12, 2011 Toxicology with ECIS - 11:00 AM EDST, April 26, 2011 ECIS Theory - 11:00 AM EDST, May 17, 2011 Cell Invasion / Extravasation Assays - 11:00 AM EDST, May 31, 2011 Automated Cell Migration - 11:00 AM EDST, June 14, 2011 Barrier Function Assays - 11:00 AM EDST, June 28, 2011 Real-time Electroporation and Monitoring - 11:00 AM EDST, July 12, 2011 Cell Attachment and Spreading Measurements - 11:00 AM EDST, July 26, 2011 Signal Transduction Assays - 11:00 AM EDST, September 13, 2011 Toxicology with ECIS - 11:00 AM EDST, September 27, 2011 ECIS Theory - 11:00 AM EDST, October 11, 2011 Cell Invasion / Extravasation Assays - 11:00 AM EDST, October 25, 2011 Automated Cell Migration - 11:00 AM EDST, November 8, 2011 Barrier Function Assays - 11:00 AM EST, November 29, 2011 Real-time Electroporation and Monitoring - 11:00 AM EST, December 13, 2011 For a more detailed description of each webinar, please visit: http://www.appliedbiophysics.com/contactUs/webinar.html.
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New Publications
Protection of LPS-Induced Murine Acute Lung Injury by Sphingosine-1-Phosphate Lyase Suppression. Yutong Zhao, Irina A Gorshkova, Evgeny Berdyshev, Donghong He, Panfeng Fu, Wenli Ma, Yanlin Su, Peter V Usatyuk, Srikanth Pendyala, Babak Oskouian, Julie D Saba, Joe G.N. Garcia, and Viswanathan Natarajan. Am. J. Respir. Cell Mol. Biol. published 10 December 2010, 10.1165/rcmb.2010-0422OC.
Electric cell-substrate impedance sensing (ECIS) based real-time measurement of titer dependent cytotoxicity induced by adenoviral vectors in an IPI-2I cell culture model. J Muller, C Thirion, and MW Pfaffl. Biosens Bioelectron. 2010.
Septin-2 Mediates Airway Epithelial Barrier Function in Physiologic and Pathologic Conditions. VK Sidhaye, E Chau, P Breysse, and LS King. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol. 2010.
Expression of WAVEs, the WASP (Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein) family of verprolin homologous proteins in human wound tissues and the biological influence on human keratinocytes. WG Jiang, L Ye, G Patel, and KG Harding. Wound Repair Regen. 2010.
Electrical cell-substrate impedance sensing as a non-invasive tool for cancer cell study. J Hong, K Kandasamy, M Marimuthu, CS Choi, and S Kim Analyst. 2010.
Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator is involved in airway epithelial wound repair. Katherine R. Schiller, Peter J. Maniak, and Scott M. O'Grady. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol. 2010; 299:C912-C921.
Epidermal growth factor receptor signalling contributes to house dust mite-induced epithelial barrier dysfunction. I.H. Heijink, A. van Oosterhout, and A. Kapus. Eur. Respir. J. 2010; 36:1016-1026.
Effect of a novel multipurpose contact lens solution on human corneal epithelial barrier function. ME Cavet, KR Vandermeid, KL Harrington, R Tchao, KW Ward, and JZ Zhang. Cont Lens Anterior Eye. 2010.
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Have you recently published an article that includes the use of ECIS? If so, submit your publications to Applied BioPhysics via email to Nancy Vlahos at vlahos@biophysics.com. We will announce your article in our newsletter, post it on our website and send you 2 FREE 8 well arrays!
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Tip of the Month:
Don't Overlook Micromotion
An often overlooked aspect of ECIS time-course data is micromotion. This term was coined in a 1991 PNAS paper by Giaever and Keese to describe the fluctuations in impedance observed in confluent cell layers. As was pointed out in that early publication, the source of these variations in the impedance is thought to be due to cell motions. Of interest is the fact that cellular motions that influence impedance are not only in the XY plane but also in the Z direction, as current must flow in the narrow spaces between the basal membrane of the cells and the electrode surface. Since these cellular motions are random in nature, they are most easily seen in a small population of cells and show up with more intensity on 1E arrays than on other arrays where the activities of more cells are averaged.
We have found micromotion is prevalent in all cells examined with ECIS and seems to be especially pronounced in endothelial cell layers. In addition, in dose response toxicology experiments, micromotion can be considerably enhanced at sub lethal dose of some compounds. You may wish to consider measurements of this interesting behavior in your research involving ECIS.
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| ECIS Humor
Need a good laugh? Visit the ECIS Cartoons page of our website to view cartoons by Catherine, our in-house cartoonist, to start your day with a smile.
Are you the creative type? Submit one of your own cartoons; if we post it on our website we will send you a free array!
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