Luciferase-Based Assay to Evaluate Antiviral Compounds in Human Embryonic Kidney Cells

0 views • 2:44 min • September 30th, 2026

Begin with a multi-well plate containing a serial dilution of the test compound to assess antiviral activity.

Add a human embryonic kidney cell suspension containing luciferase-expressing recombinant measles virus to each well.

Incubate to allow the cells to adhere to the bottom of each well.

In the control well without the test compound, the virus fuses with the cell membrane and releases its genome into the cytoplasm.

The viral genome directs the production of viral RNA and proteins, along with the reporter protein luciferase.

In the test wells, the antiviral compound inhibits viral replication, reducing luciferase production.

Add a luciferase-specific substrate to each well, which interacts with the luciferase and emits luminescence.

Use a plate reader to measure the luminescence intensity in each well.

Lower luminescence in the test wells compared with the control well shows viral inhibition.

A progressive decline in luminescence with increasing compound concentration shows dose-dependent inhibition of viral replication.

Add one microliter from the compound dilution plate to the white barcoded tissue culture plate. Repeat this process twice to create a triplicate set of test plates. Then

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