UCLA-Developed Technology Enables Single-Cell Sorting by Function

For nearly 40 years, drugmakers have used genetically engineered cells as tiny drug factories. Such cells can be programmed to secrete compounds that yield drugs used to treat cancer and autoimmune conditions such as arthritis.

Efforts to develop and manufacture new biologic treatments may gain from a new technology for quickly sorting single, live cells in a standard laboratory setup. With microscopic, bowl-shaped hydrogel containers called “nanovials,” a UCLA-led research team recently demonstrated the ability to select cells based on what type they are, and which compounds — and how much of those compounds — they secrete.