Skip to contentScholarGate
LibraryBookshelfDeskReview StudioAssistant
Sign in
Transwell Assay/Evidence
Method evidence record

Transwell Assay

The Transwell assay (also called the Boyden chamber assay after its originator Stephen Boyden) is a quantitative method for measuring cell migration and invasion in response to chemical gradients or through matrix barriers. The assay uses a membrane insert with defined pore size suspended in a multi-well plate: cells are placed in the upper chamber, a chemoattractant is placed in the lower chamber, and cells that successfully migrate through the pores accumulate in the lower chamber, where they can be counted or visualized. Variants that coat the insert with matrix proteins (Matrigel, collagen) enable measurement of invasion capacity. The Transwell assay is a gold-standard method in cell biology for evaluating cell motility, tumor metastatic potential, and the effects of growth factors and inhibitory compounds.

Sources recorded, not reviewed

Source record

Citations copied verbatim from the method’s source record. No claim-level verification is inferred from them.

Transwell Migration and Invasion Assay
Taxonomic method record · process-pipeline / biomaterials
  • Boyden, S. (1962). The chemotactic effect of mixtures of antibody and antigen on polymorphonuclear leucocytes. Journal of Experimental Medicine, 115(3), 453-466. · DOI 10.1084/jem.115.3.453
  • Albini, A., Iwama, Y., Odaka, C., & Bomstein, P. (1987). Exogenous ATIII inhibits basic fibroblast growth factor-induced angiogenesis in vitro. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 84(17), 6142-6146. · URL
  • Kramer, N., Walzl, A., Unger, C., et al. (2013). In vitro cell migration and invasion assays. Mutation Research/Reviews in Mutation Research, 752(2), 142-195. · DOI 10.1016/j.mrrev.2012.08.001
Open full method

Curated claims

Claims persisted in the evidence ledger, each with its own assessment.

No curated claims yet

This view does not invent a claim assessment when the ledger has none.

Related methods

Generated from the method graph and shown as machine-suggested relations — no evidence claim is inferred.

Same method familyCAM Assaymachine-suggested · Relational suggestion, not evidence.Same method familyLive/Dead Assaymachine-suggested · Relational suggestion, not evidence.Same method familyMTT/MTS Assaymachine-suggested · Relational suggestion, not evidence.Same method familyScratch Wound Assaymachine-suggested · Relational suggestion, not evidence.

Evidence status

Sources recorded, not reviewed

Bibliographic sources are present. Claim-level evidence review has not been performed.

Sources

3 recorded citations, copied from the method source record.

Actions

Open method page
ScholarGate

A content-first reference library for research methods — what each one is, how it works, and where it comes from.

Open data (CC-BY)

Explore

  • Library
  • Search the library…
  • Browse by field
  • Fields
  • Journey
  • Compare
  • Which method?

Reference

  • Subjects
  • Atlas
  • Glossary
  • Methodology
  • Philosophy

Your tools

  • Bookshelf
  • Desk
  • Chat

Company

  • About
  • Pricing
  • Contact
  • Suggest a method

Entries are compiled from published sources for reference. Verifying the accuracy and suitability of any information for your own use remains your responsibility.

© 2026 ScholarGate · A research-method reference library
  • Privacy
  • Cookies
  • Terms
  • Delete account