Controlling the up- or downregulation of important cell surface receptors is proving to be a promising approach to treat various inflammatory diseases and cancers. This can effectively inhibit the migration and homing of disease-promoting cells, or elicit immune responses against diseases. Scientists at RAPT Therapeutics in San Francisco, USA, rely on INTEGRA instruments – including EVOLVE manual pipettes, VIAFLO 96 and VIAFLO 384 electronic pipettes, VOYAGER adjustable tip spacing pipettes and the ASSIST PLUS pipetting robot – to seamlessly streamline the development of small molecule inhibitors for the treatment of inflammatory diseases and cancers.

The immune system is a finely-tuned network of processes designed to protect the host from disease. Upregulating or downregulating individual pathways in this network could help the body to fight cancers and inflammatory diseases, such as atopic dermatitis. RAPT Therapeutics is a clinical stage, immunology-based biopharmaceutical company focused on developing small molecule therapies for these 2 disease areas. Steven Lomeli Gonzalez, Research Associate in the Immunology Department, explained: “We already have 2 leading drug candidates in clinical trials – 1 for inflammatory diseases and 1 for cancer targets – that show promise for inhibiting the recruitment of disease-promoting immune cells in inflamed tissues and tumors. We hope to accelerate these to commercialization, so that small molecule inhibitors can continue to help improve the lives of patients.”

Efficient tools for streamlined drug development

RAPT therapeutics has the in-house capabilities to take drug candidates from discovery all the way to commercialization, and Steven and his team are focused on characterizing various immune cell subsets that result from inducing atopic dermatitis, as well as monitoring responses to the company’s small molecule inhibitor candidate. They use several INTEGRA instruments to efficiently establish cell culture and ELISA experiments to answer vital questions that may arise before or after clinical trials. Steven continued: “I work with EVOLVE manual pipettes and VIAFLO 96 electronic pipettes on a day-to-day basis, and find their performance outstanding. They are extremely efficient, which is not only critical for moving onto the next stage of a project, but also for maintaining a good work-life balance. The VIAFLO 96 electronic pipettes have been particularly useful for improving our productivity, and performing ELISAs is seamless and enjoyable when dispensing entire 96 well plates in one go. We have seen firsthand how efficient a research scientist can be using INTEGRA products, so many of my colleagues in the clinical research laboratories have also started using VOYAGER adjustable tip spacing pipettes, VIAFLO 384 electronic pipettes and an ASSIST PLUS pipetting robot.”

Ergonomic manual pipettes for greater comfort 

Efficiency is critical for improving employee satisfaction by reducing the time spent on tasks. However, when manual pipetting is unavoidable, it is important to use ergonomic instruments to prevent injury. Steven elaborated: “EVOLVE pipettes never fail to impress; you can tell that INTEGRA meticulously designs ergonomic pipettes and pays great attention to detail. They are sleek, easy to use, and the plunger is remarkably smooth. It makes such a difference to user comfort when you are pipetting for long periods of time, helping to avoid repetitive strain injuries.”

Enhancing reliability in immunology research

The accuracy and precision of the INTEGRA pipettes have also improved the quality of the company’s research. Steven described his experience of this: “I have found the pipettes to be extremely accurate and precise. Even though we receive information from the manufacturer about how they have been tested at various volume ranges, I always do my own follow up testing to be sure. When I do this and input the data into a graph, the trend lines look really great, so I can have confidence in our pipetting accuracy. To me, INTEGRA instruments are unparalleled when it comes to accuracy and precision, which has definitely enhanced the quality of our immunology research.”

Providing a better future for patients

“With our efficient, ergonomic and accurate pipettes, we can continue to progress our small molecule inhibitors through clinical trials to improve cancer and autoimmune disease treatment. That is what is most important at the end of the day; we all know someone that has been impacted by these disease areas, and we hope that getting our candidates to market quicker can help to improve the prognosis for patients in the future,” Steven concluded.