Cellomics Inc, the market leader in High Content Screening (HCS), announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued Cellomics U.S. Patent Number 6,416,959 entitled "A System for Cell-Based Screening." The patent encompasses methods for High Content Screening, including methods for cell-based detection and classification and/or identification of toxins in a test substance.

Specifically, the claims include methods of measuring the localization, distribution, structure or activity of fluorescent reporter molecules to detect the presence of a toxin in a test substance, identify the pathway that is perturbed by the toxin, and/or identify the specific toxin or group of toxins that are present in the test substance.

"Effective implementation of HCS assays for cytotoxicity assessment is rapidly becoming critical in drug discovery. This patent strengthens our already strong portfolio of BioApplications and reagents that, together with the rest of our powerful HCS platform, enable our users to quickly integrate cytotoxicity evaluations into their research," stated Dr. Jeffrey Haskins, Vice President of Assay Development with Cellomics Inc. "This patent expands Cellomics' portfolio of intellectual property in the HCS area," added Dr. D. Lansing Taylor, CEO. "We believe that this patent, as well as our additional patent applications on HCS assays, reagents, instrumentation, and tools for information management and cellular bioinformatics, will further Cellomics' standing as the leader in HCS."