Denomination

Elispot

Coordinator

Prof. Daniela Fenoglio

Description

ELISPOT (acronym for Enzyme-linked immunospot) represents a widely used immunological method to monitor immune responses both in man and in animal models. The method has been developed 25 years ago, starting from the standard ELISA by Cecil Czerkinsky to assess the frequency of B cells secreting antigen-specific antibodies. Subsequently, the ELISPOT has been adapted to measure cytokines produced by CD4 + T and CD8 + antigen-specific cells and is an essential approach to measure the antigen-specific T helper responses. Currently, the ELISPOT platform can be potentially used to quantify any molecule secreted after cell stimulation, and it has recently been shown, between the ex-vivo methods, such as that capable of quantifying and assessing the immune response with greater sensitivity.

ELISPOT assays have become in recent years an integral part of many clinical trials or basic research projects to monitor the effectiveness of the administration of medication or immunization strategies in oncology and infectious diseases. The ELISPOT can be used in combination with other static and dynamic tests, such as the staining with fluorescent MHC multimers, the measurement of intracellular cytokines, proliferation and cytotoxic activity to get a general picture of the immune response.

The ELISPOT Facility of CEBR aims: a) to support and collaborate with internal or external research groups at the CEBR in preclinical and clinical models; b) to provide a service to small and medium-sized businesses that require cellular analyzes involving the use of ELISPOT platform; c) to offer a ELISPOT service optimized for immunological monitoring to develop immunotherapies in accordance with international guidelines established by the Cancer Immunotherapy Consortium of the Cancer Research Institute and the 'Association for Cancer Immunotherapy CIMT Immunoguiding Program.

Finally, the ELISPOT Facility operates in the training of researchers using the ELISPOT platform and assists researchers in the analysis and interpretation of data.

The ELISPOT Service has a tool Automated Elispot assay Video analysis System reader (A.EL.VIS GmbH, Germany), and the acquisition and analysis of data is performed using A.EL.VI.S. ELISPOT Analysis Software V5.1.