Viability and Metabolism
Active ingredients may increase metabolic activity, or in case of excessive concentrations may also reduce metabolic activity as a function of toxicity.
Mechanistic Evaluation
Metabolic function is often evaluated mechanistically via metabolism-dependent viability tests such as the MTT test, or alternatively by quantifying the integrity of the mitochondrial membrane, the central site of oxidative metabolism in the cell.
Functional Evaluation
Alternatively, metabolism may be easily evaluated at the functional level by evaluating cell proliferation. This may be the preferred approach for longer, more chronic active ingredient treatments.