Abstract

Cell proliferation occurs via cell division under appropriate conditions, including a controlled cell cycle and cellular homeostasis, and the abrogation of cell proliferation results in pathological states such as cancer and senescence. Cell-based in vitro experiments were conducted in an optimal cell proliferation environment, and the analysis of cell proliferation is a critical tool for exploring cellular homeostasis and developing drugs to modulate cell growth. Although colorimetric assays are limited by the small culture area and the short tracing period and cell counting using a hemocytometer requires multiple plating for each time point to be analyzed, these two methods have been used widely for the analysis of cell proliferation. In this study, we aimed to develop a robust method to detect cell proliferation via an automated microscopic cell-number analysis (AMCA) system to overcome the limitations of traditional methods. In contrast colorimetric assays showed reduced sensitivity with increased cell density, AMCA showed constantly reliable detection. Also, the AMCA system exhibited a comparable cell proliferation trend with the direct whole-cell counting method. In conclusion, we suggest AMCA as an alternative method to analyzing cell proliferation with expanded spatial and culture period conditions and expect AMCA to provide an efficient drug developing experiment.