High-throughput cytotoxicity screening: hit and miss

It has long been established that there is a need for toxicity testing in drug discovery. As the number of lead compounds continues to expand, the problem facing the industry is where to position the toxicity tests in the drug discovery pipeline. To and effort, the tests should be performed as early in the process as possible. Historically, the assays available have not lent themselves well to the needs of HTS. This review discusses some of the pitfalls associated with toxicity testing, and covers the advances in technology that enable provision of accurate and reproducible data.