Research: Minimal Volumes, Maximum Scalability

With the development of regenerative therapy, researchers and industry face the challenge of producing higher numbers of cells without compromising quality, such as is required for clinical testing. Therefore, some of the first research groups such as the Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Toronto (Canada) and the Institute of Reconstructive Biology at the University of Bonn (Germany) are relying on DASGIP technologies to cultivate their stem cells in controlled systems. By analyzing physical variables like dissolved oxygen or shear stress, researchers such as Oliver Brüstle and Peter Zandstra are looking to open up and take advantage of the impact of additional parameters for cell growth and differentiation.

» E-Flyer Stem Cells (PDF)

» Poster "Controlled Microcarrier-Based Cultivation of Adherent Mesenchymal Stem Cells in a Stirring Reactor", TERMIS 2008 (PDF)

» Publication "Controlled, Scalable Embryonic Stem Cell differentiation Culture", Stephen Dang, Sharon Gerecht-Nir, Jinny Chen, Joseph Itskovitz-Eldor, Peter W. Zandstra, Stem Cells 2004 (PDF)

» Publication "Development of a Perfusion Fed Bioreactor for Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocyte Generation: Oxygen-Mediated Enhancement of Cardiomyocyte Output", Céline Bauwens, Ting Yin, Stephen Dang, Ratheem Peerani, Peter W. Zandstra, Wiley Interscience, 2005 (PDF)

One of the earliest uses of genetic engineering was and is the production of recombinant proteins for pharmaceutical or industrial applications. From early on, a wide range of bacterial organisms, fungi or mammalian cells was used to produce foreign proteins such as insulin, antibodies or coagulation factors. Whether for tried and tested expression systems like Escherichia coli or Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) cells or for researching new, potential production organisms, DASGIP parallel bioreactor systems are capable of maintaining precisely defined cultivation conditions and controlling complex cultivation processes. Fermentation and cultivation parameters such as pH value, temperature, dissolved oxygen, biomass and gas concentration can be measured online and controlled with a high degree of precision. This permits an automated process control and as a result leads to reproducible research results.

 
» E-Flyer E. coli

» E-Flyer CHO Cells

In the fields of biology and biochemistry, but particularly in medical research, the examination of the proteom, which is the entire complement of proteins in an organism, is continually gaining importance. By performing a differential analysis of the proteom of different cells or tissues, as well as a cell type under various cultivation conditions, conclusions can be drawn regarding the functionality of single proteins or groups. This could potentially lead to more powerful industrial enzymes or pesticides. Medical researchers hope to identify new pharmaceutical agents to combat cancer, infections or specific neurological conditions. Cultivation processes carried out with DASGIP bieoreactor systems enable the parallel growth of microbial, animal or human cell cultures for comparative proteom analysis.  Defined and reproducible conditions can be created in up to 16 parallel cultivation vessels in order to yield information regarding the components of metabolic pathways and molecular control loops. Apart from temperature and pH value, the precise gas mixture in the air supply and the addition of additives can be stored in complex profiles. This permits the reproducible analysis of sophisticated cultivation processes and produces reliable research results.