Fluidigm Introduces AccuLift Laser Capture Microdissection System to Advance Translational and Clinical Pathology Research

Driving Cell Capture to Insight with Precision, Speed and Simplicity to Accelerate Biomarker and Therapeutic Development

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., March 10, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fluidigm Corporation (Nasdaq:FLDM), an innovative biotechnology tools provider with a vision to improve life through comprehensive health insight, today announced the introduction of the AccuLift Laser Capture Microdissection System. Ideal for translational and clinical pathology research, the new AccuLift product portfolio enables precise and efficient capture of individual cells or larger tissue regions for DNA, RNA and protein biomarker analysis.

Laser capture microdissection (LCM) is an essential tool in the study of cancer, immuno-oncology, and neurological and immune-mediated diseases. This application enables researchers to capture cellular regions of interest from frozen and formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections for downstream analysis using DNA and RNA sequencing, real-time PCR, or mass spectrometry analysis. Other commercially available LCM systems have shortcomings for routine use down to single-cell resolution, and these shortcomings can lead to inefficient cellular capture or even failure to capture regions of interest. Such limitations can become a significant challenge in high-impact research studies involving the study of infiltrating immune cell subtypes or highly diverse tissue microenvironments.

The LCM market, which Fluidigm estimates to represent more than $100 million per annum today, is ripe for expansion through innovation that supports the large and growing trend toward highly multiplexed molecular and cellular profiling. To achieve this goal, Fluidigm collaborated with Dr. Lance Liotta, key inventor of LCM and Co-Director of the Center for Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine (CAPMM) at George Mason University, to develop the new AccuLift product portfolio.

The AccuLift System enables precise and efficient cellular collection from a range of sample types using a patent-pending design that includes a high-precision stage and uniquely aligned IR and UV lasers. Incorporating a new and highly innovative capture method developed in Liotta’s laboratory and exclusively licensed from George Mason University, the optimized cap and extraction kits increase the efficiency of cellular capture and extraction to maximize downstream results. Complementary to the Fluidigm product portfolio, the AccuLift System has potential for use upstream of Fluidigm microfluidics systems and Advanta assays in the future for cost-efficient, nanoscale molecular analysis.