Welcome to the May edition of the AI for Live Cell Insights Newsletter, bringing you the latest live cell analyses powering drug discovery and cosmetics development. Each month, we will explore a new application of AI-based cellular analysis for label-free live cell imaging, with publication highlights and news from . This month, we are introducing Nanolive’s new release of the LIVE T Cell Assay, an AI-powered, label-free immune profiling solution, as well as recent publications in the fields of oncology and toxicology.
AI for real-time T cell and target cell dynamics
Curious about what Nanolive’s LIVE T Cell Assay can actually deliver? Our latest scientific poster illustrates how T cell activation, target cell interactions, and target cell death can be monitored with high precision in a fully automated and non-invasive manner.
AI-generated masks powered by the LIVE T Cell Assay automatically segment T cells and target cells in co-cultures, highlighting T cell activation status, viability of both populations, and dynamic T cell:target cell interactions. This approach yields real-time, quantitative data for immunotherapy applications including CAR-T, TCR-T, antibody development and more..
Download the poster now to explore the insights that can be extracted in a single click!
Boosting γδ T cell-based immunotherapies with Nanolive’s LIVE T Cell Assay
In a recent study published in Cancer Immunology Research, scientists from Aix Marseille University explored the potential of a monoclonal anti-BTN2A1 agonist antibody to enhance γδ T cell effector functions against cancer. Their findings, reported in the paper “Targeting BTN2A1 Enhances Vγ9Vδ2 T-Cell Effector Functions and Triggers Tumor Cell Pyroptosis”, revealed that the antibody not only promoted stronger, longer-lasting interactions between T cells and tumor cells, but also induced pyroptotic cell death in cancer targets. These insights highlight the therapeutic promise of targeting BTN2A1 to amplify anti-tumor responses in immuno-oncology. To conduct this research, the authors leveraged to analyze co-cultures of Vγ9Vδ2 T cells with endometrial adenocarcinoma (Ishikawa) and lymphoma (SUP-T1) cells.
Using our AI-driven analysis, they quantified key interaction parameters such as T cell velocity, contact duration, and target cell death—without the use of labels or dyes. The ability to dynamically monitor effector-target cell interactions in real time allowed the researchers to demonstrate the stabilizing effect of the antibody on immune synapse formation. This study underscores the value of Nanolive’s label-free imaging in immuno-oncology, where precise, non-invasive, and real-time monitoring of immune cell function is crucial. By combining holotomography with machine learning, the LIVE T Cell Assay delivers a powerful tool to accelerate the development of antibody therapies and cellular immunotherapies alike.
You can read the full paper “Targeting BTN2A1 Enhances Vγ9Vδ2 T-Cell Effector Functions and Triggers Tumor Cell Pyroptosis” here, or contact the authors for a PDF copy at mathieu.Frechin@nanolive.ch.
Combined with advanced computer vision, holotomography provides us with unique quantitative information on the dynamic interactions between effector and target cells. Specifically, we were able to show that our antibody promoted a long-lasting anti-tumor response of γδT cells and illustrated its effect on the establishment and stabilization of the effector-target cell interaction.
Latest publication highlights with Nanolive imaging:
- Nanotoxicology: Kung H.Y. et al. (2025). The correlation of immunotoxicity with size and chemical properties of particulate matter within macrophages. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part C: Toxicology & Pharmacology, 274, 110215. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpc.2025.110215
- Toxicology: Kumar, A., et al. (2025). The correlation of immunotoxicity with size and chemical properties of particulate matter within macrophages. Precision Nanomedicine, 6(2), 100236. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prenap.2025.100236
- Aging: Bubb K. et al. (2025). Metabolic rewiring caused by mitochondrial dysfunction promotes mTORC1-dependent skeletal aging. Science Advances, 11(16), eads1842. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.ads1842
- Cancer Therapeutics: Bolt M.J. et al. (2025). A phenotypic screen identifies xanthohumol and other flavonoids as killers of bladder cancer. Pharmacological Research – Natural Products. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prenap.2025.100236
- Infectious Diseases: Li Q. et al. (2025). Staphylococcus aureus β-hemolysin impairs oxygen transport without causing hemolysis. Virulence. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/21505594.2025.2490208
Find over 300 publications featuring Nanolive imaging here.
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