Emerging Trends In Scaling-Up Lab Production Of Cell Cultures

It’s no secret that most laboratory biology, including cell culture production, is done on a small scale; be it in dishes, flasks or tubes. For most, these small cultures, while easy to manage, produce byproducts on an equally small scale, where just a few micrograms of purified protein yield is considered a success. But for researchers whose eyes are set on producing larger yields, for goals such as manufacturing a new drug from secreted proteins for example, the small scale petri dish just doesn’t cut it. Culturists understand that producing a quantifiable yield, means scaling-up their current cultures through either suspension or adherent cell cultures; and the transition is usually no simple task. Bioreactors have been, and continue to be the premier, tried-and-true method for culturing cells. This is mainly due to the ease with which researchers can purchase a smaller, single use vessel and slowly transition into a larger reactor as conditions are optimized. There are different types of bioreactors, and each is designed for specific culture needs. Luckily, online marketplaces such as Biomarketplace.com can connect researchers and culturists with vendors of specialized equipment for large scale cell culture production such has spinner flasks, dishes and bioreactors, with just the click of the mouse. rnGiven the currently increasing demand for such large scale cell culture production tools and technologies, here is our short list of large scale cell culture production trends to consider for your cell culturing and research needs:. Stirred-Tank Bio-Reactors rnHistorically, stirred-tank bioreactors have been the standard for culturing submerged cultures, according to a 2012 application report by the German biotech company, Eppendorf. While most stirred-tank bioreactors are larger in size, a recent trend in utilizing smaller vessels has been on the rise. One of the newest innovations of stirred-tank bioreactors is the recent launch of Sartorius’s ambr® 250 modular bioreactor system, which is an expandable bench-top mini stirred-tank bioreactor system. Possibly the best part about this system, is that it is designed to help bioprocess scientists improve productivity in scalable bioprocess development, reducing timelines and increasing viable production yields. rnUp-And-Down Agitation Bio-Reactors rnOne of the best alternatives to the stirred-tank bioreactor is the up-and-down agitator vessel design. These reactors are growing in favor due to their ability to keep shear stress from affecting the cells in suspension. Instead of using a traditional propeller agitator with a motor and magnetic coupling like in stirred-tanks, up-and-down agitator bioreactors create a vertical up and down motion using an inexpensive membrane. These tanks are gentler on cells and produce less unnecessary foam, while assuring sterility and mixing cultures efficiently without creating a vortex in the medium. Fixed-Bed Bio-Reactors rnScaling-up cell cultures is not always best served by utilizing suspension culturing techniques. In fact in some cases, such as those looking to produce certain secreted proteins or for cells that are anchorage-dependent and cannot be adapted for suspension culture, scientists may need to look to alternative culturing methods such as adherent cell culturing.. This method of cell culturing, requires cells adhere to small beads or fibers, instead of being suspended in liquid. For these types of cell cultures, fixed-bed bioreactors are an option, however, they come with a potential snag – it is almost impossible to remove cells from the fixed bed once they have adhered. Tissue Cloning Bioreactor rnOne of the most promising advances in cell culture technology to emerge in the last decade has been NASA’s tissue cloning bioreactors. The design for these reactors is significantly different from any of the other industrial bioreactors on this list and is specialized to culture complex mammalian cells. Mammalian cell and tissue cultures require highly complex structural and auxotrophic support during production. When adhered to the specialized media of this bio-reactor, cell cultures can quickly and efficiently grow into entire tissues from single cell cultures. Just recently, the Massachusetts General Hospital published a paper in the journal Circulation Research, describing how they have successfully grown functioning heart muscle tissues from stem cells derived from human skin cell cultures.