Cell culture system hailed as 'transforming cultivation'
being responsible for dramatically transforming the effectiveness
of small-scale antibody production.
The Swiss firm said its CELLine system is bringing "considerable cost and time-saving benefits to cell cultivation" - in particular, high production yields and a 90 per cent reduction in media supplement requirements were cited.
CELLine uses a proprietary membrane technology to separate off the cultivation chamber with an upper semi-permeable membrane through which nutrients can diffuse, and a lower one that allows gases to diffuse.
This novel compartmentalised arrangement means that medium can be exchanged without influencing the function or growth of the cells and gases, said Integra.
"Traditional cell growth limitations brought about by a lack of nutrients or the accumulation of metabolic waste can be overcome just as easily as oxygen deficiency."
"Such optimised conditions promote significant cell growth and lead to drastically increased cell densities."
Specifically, Integra said that cells growing under the optimal conditions created in CELLine reach densities of 107-108 cells/mL and the concentration of expressed protein is typically 50-100 times above what is found in standard cell culture disposables. Concentrations of monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) range from 1-2mg/mL.
The firm also points to positive feedback it has received from staff at Germany's Institute for Molecular Medicine & Experimental Immunology (IMMEI) as an example of the bioreactors' efectiveness.
Petra Peters a technical assistant at IMMEI who has used Integra's CELLine 350 to produce antibodies for the past year said: "Working with CELLine 350 is very time efficient and cost-saving."
While initially sceptical of the flask's benefits, Peters said he "can now produce large amounts of antibody in a very short time."
