The MTT Assay Reagent provides a simple method for determining live cellnumbers using a standard colorimetric plate readers. Determination of live cellnumbers is often used to assess the rate of cell proliferation and cytotoxicitycaused by drugs and cytotoxic agents. Among all non-radioactive viability assays,MTT assay developed by Mossman is one of the most versatile and popular assays.
MTT is a tetrazolium salt that is turned into a purple formazan product afterreduction by mitochondrial enzymes that are only present in metabolicallyactive live cells, not in dead cells. The amount of formazan product generatedis proportional to the number of living cells in the sample. At the end of the assay,the cells containing the formazan product are solubilized and then photometricallyquantified at 570 nm.