Caco-2 Cells: An Overview

The Caco-2 cell line is an immortalized line of heterogeneous human epithelial colorectal adenocarcinoma cells. Human colonic adenocarcinoma cells that are able to express differentiation features characteristic of mature i ntestinal cells, such as enterocytes or mucus cells. These cells are valuable in vitro tools for studies related to intestinal cell function and differentiation. The Caco-2 cell line is widely used with in vitro assays to predict the absorption rate of candidate drug compounds across the intestinal epithelial cell barrier. Caco-2 may also refer to a cell monolayer absorption model. Cell-based functional assays, such as the Caco-2 drug tra nsport model for assessing intestinal transport, are extremely valuable for screening lead compounds in drug discovery.