Nutrient optimization for high density biological production applications

Development of a modified serum-free medium for Vero cell cultures: effects of protein hydrolysates, l-glutamine and SITE liquid media supplement on cell growth

Vero cells have been widely used in the viral vaccine production due to the recommendation of the World Health Organization regarding its safety and non-tumorigenicity. The aim of this study was to describe the development a modified serum-free medium for Vero cell cultures. Two protein hydrolysates (Bacto™ soytone and Bacto™ yeast extract), vitamin C, vitamin B12, SITE liquid media supplement, and recombinant human epidermal growth factor (rEGF) were investigated as serum substitutes. A sequential experiment of fractional factorial and central composite design was applied. A modified serum-free medium obtained (named as SFM01-M) was verified. Contrary to P0, the cell yields obtained at P1, P2, and P3 decreased continuously during the verification experiments indicating that Vero cells could not adapt to SFM01-M as expected according to the empirical mathematical model. To improve cell growth after P0, protein hydrolysates, l-glutamine, and SITE liquid media supplement were further investigated. The results showed that cell yields gradually decreased from P1 to P3 when a fixed concentration of Bacto™ yeast extract (7.0 g/L) combined with various concentrations of Bacto™ soytone (0.1-7.0 g/L) in SFM01-M were used. Similarly, cell yields also gradually decreased from P1 to P3 when a fixed concentration of Bacto™ soytone (7.0 g/L) combined with various concentrations of Bacto™ yeast extract (0.1-7.0 g/L) in SFM01-M were used. However, the combination of Bacto™ soytone at 0.1 g/L and Bacto™ yeast extract at 7.0 g/L or Bacto™ soytone at 7.0 g/L and Bacto™ yeast extract at 0.1 g/L in SFM01-M could give the maximum cell yield at P3 when compared with other combinations. In addition, the addition of SITE liquid media supplement (0.1-2.0% v/v) in SFM01-M in which the concentrations of Bacto™ soytone, Bacto™ yeast extract, and l-glutamine were fixed at 0.1 g/L, 0.1 g/L, and 4.0 mM, respectively, the results showed that the cell yields obtained at P3 were not significantly different. From this study, the optimum concentrations of SFM01-M components were as follows: Bacto™ soytone (0.1 g/L), Bacto™ yeast extract (0.1 g/L), vitamin C (9.719 mg/L), vitamin B12 (0.1725 mg/L), SITE liquid media supplement (0.1-2.0% v/v), rEGF (0.05756 mg/L), l-glutamine (4.0 mM), MEM non-essential amino acids (1.0% v/v), sodium pyruvate (1.0 mM), MEM (9.4 g/L), and sodium hydrogen carbonate (2.2 g/L). However, to evaluate SFM01-M in the long-term subculture of Vero cells, the efficiency of SFM01-M will be further investigated.

Production of a Foot-and-Mouth Disease Vaccine Antigen Using Suspension-Adapted BHK-21 Cells in a Bioreactor

The baby hamster kidney-21 (BHK-21) cell line is a continuous cell line used to propagate foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) virus for vaccine manufacturing. BHK-21 cells are anchorage-dependent, although suspension cultures would enable rapid growth in bioreactors, large-scale virus propagation, and cost-effective vaccine production with serum-free medium. Here, we report the successful adaptation of adherent BHK-21 cells to growth in suspension to a viable cell density of 7.65 × 10⁶ cells/mL on day 3 in serum-free culture medium. The suspension-adapted BHK-21 cells showed lower adhesion to five types of extracellular matrix proteins than adherent BHK-21 cells, which contributed to the suspension culture. In addition, a chemically defined medium (selected by screening various prototype media) led to increased FMD virus production yields in the batch culture, even at a cell density of only 3.5 × 10⁶ cells/mL. The suspension BHK-21 cell culture could be expanded to a 200 L bioreactor from a 20 mL flask, which resulted in a comparable FMD virus titer. This platform technology improved virus productivity, indicating its potential for enhancing FMD vaccine production.

Benchmarking of commercially available CHO cell culture media for antibody production

In this study, eight commercially available, chemically defined Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell culture media from different vendors were evaluated in batch culture using an IgG-producing CHO DG44 cell line as a model. Medium adaptation revealed that the occurrence of even small aggregates might be a good indicator of cell growth performance in subsequent high cell density cultures. Batch experiments confirmed that the culture medium has a significant impact on bioprocess performance, but high amino acid concentrations alone were not sufficient to ensure superior cell growth and high antibody production. However, some key amino acids that were limiting in most media could be identified. Unbalanced glucose and amino acids led to high cell-specific lactate and ammonium production rates. In some media, persistently high glucose concentrations probably induced the suppression of respiration and oxidative phosphorylation, known as Crabtree effect, which resulted in high cell-specific glycolysis rates along with a continuous and high lactate production. In additional experiments, two of the eight basal media were supplemented with feeds from two different manufacturers in six combinations, in order to understand the combined impact of media and feeds on cell metabolism in a CHO fed-batch process. Cell growth, nutrient consumption and metabolite production rates, antibody production, and IgG quality were evaluated in detail. Concentrated feed supplements boosted cell concentrations almost threefold and antibody titers up to sevenfold. Depending on the fed-batch strategy, fourfold higher peak cell concentrations and eightfold increased IgG titers (up to 5.8 g/L) were achieved. The glycolytic flux was remarkably similar among the fed-batches; however, substantially different specific lactate production rates were observed in the different media and feed combinations. Further analysis revealed that in addition to the feed additives, the basal medium can make a considerable contribution to the ammonium metabolism of the cells. The glycosylation of the recombinant antibody was influenced by the selection of basal medium and feeds. Differences of up to 50 % in the monogalacto-fucosylated (G1F) and high mannose fraction of the IgG were observed.

Continuous, high capacity reconstitution of nutrient media from concentrated intermediates

We designed an Integrated Media Preparation System (IMPS) for continuous, on-line preparation of cell culture media and delivery to intermediate storage vessels or directly to a bioreactor. Key components of the IMPS include: a high precision, continuous fluid mixing device; formulation-specific liquid medium concentrates; validated process controls and membrane filtration; and automated dispensing into large volume flexible plastic containers. The IMPS system is designed to produce sterile, single-strength liquid medium from common raw materials at a delivery rate of 1000-3000 liters per hour and will manufacture homogenous batches from several thousand liters to over 60,000 liters. Fortified nutrient media prepared from multi-component 50X concentrates have been demonstrated to accelerate bioreactor seed chains, increase product yield, and reduce the overall manufacturing cost of nutrient medium. A productivity matrix will analyze the fully-loaded costs and contrast alternative methods for media preparation against projected biological yield.

Basal medium development for serum-free culture: a historical perspective

The evolution of basal synthetic formulations to support mammalian cell culture applications has been facilitated by the contributions of many investigators. Definition of minimally-required nutrient categories by Harry Eagle in the 1950's spawned an iterative process of continuous modification and refinement of the exogenous environment to cultivate new cell types and to support emerging applications of cultured mammalian cells. Key historical elements are traced, leading to the development of high potency, basal nutrient formulations capable of sustaining serum-free proliferation and biological production. Emerging techniques for alimentation of fed batch and continuous perfusion bioreactors, using partial nutrient concentrates deduced from spent medium analysis, can enhance medium utilization and bioreactor productivity.

Development of Animal-free, Protein-Free and Chemically-Defined Media for NS0 Cell Culture

There has been a recent boom of monoclonal antibodies on the market, and a significant portion of them were produced by NS0 cell lines. As regulations become more stringent in ensuring production processes are free of potential contamination by adventitious agents, it is highly desirable to further develop serum-free media into ones that do not contain any components of animal origin, or 'animal-free media'. Using a shake-flask batch culture system, recombinant proteins (human albumin and human insulin) and synthetic compounds (tropolone and ferric ammonium citrate) were identified to be capable of replacing the animal-sourced proteins commonly found in serum-free media for NS0 cell culture, namely bovine albumin, insulin and transferrin. The cholesterol requirement of NS0 cells was satisfied by the use of a commercially available non-proteinaceous, non-animal sourced cholesterol/fatty acid mix in place of bovine lipoproteins, which in effect also eliminated the need for recombinant albumin. In the animal-free medium thus formulated, NS0 cell lines, either the host or recombinant constructs, were all able to grow in batch culture to 1~ 3x10(6) viable cells/ml for multiple passages, with no requirement for gradual adaptation even when seeded from 10% serum-containing cultures. It was surprising to observe that the recombinant insulin was essentially ineffective as sodium salt compared to its zinc salt. Studies showed that the zinc deficiency in the former resulted in a rapid decline of cell viabilities. Supplementation of zinc ions greatly improved growth, and even led to the total replacement of recombinant insulin and hence the formulation of a protein-free medium. When the cell lines were adapted to cholesterol-independent growth which eliminated the need for any lipid source, a completely chemically-defined animal-free medium was formulated. In all cases, antibody production by various GS-NS0 constructs in animal-free media was stable for multiple passages and at least similar to the original serum-free medium containing the animal-sourced proteins. The medium also served well for cryopreservation of NS0 cells in the absence of serum.

Overview of protein expression by mammalian cells

This unit reviews the stages involved in protein production in mammalian cells using a stable-expression approach. Choice of cell type is discussed, as is transfection of the host cells, methods for selection and amplification of transformants, and growth of cells at appropriate scale for protein production. Since post-transcriptional modification and intracellular protein transportation are important features of recombinant-protein production in mammalian cells, some description of these mechanisms is included.

Modification of glucose and glutamine metabolism in hybridoma cells through metabolic engineering

The present work describes the genetic modification of a hybridoma cell line with the aim to change its metabolic behaviour, particularly reducing the amounts of ammonia and lactate produced by the cells. The cellular excretion of ammonia was eliminated by transfection of a cloned glutamine synthetase gene. The metabolic characterisation of the transformed cell line includes the analysis of the changes introduced in its intracellular metabolic fluxes by means of a stoichiometric model. Furthermore, the reduction of lactate accumulation was attempted through an antisense mRNA approach, aiming to generate a rate limiting step in the glycolytic pathway, thus lowering the glucose consumption rate. The physiological results obtained with the transformed cells are discussed. A maximum reduction of about 47% in the glucose consumption rate was obtained for one of the transformations. However a main drawback was the lack of stability of the transformed cells.

Apoptosis-resistant E1B-19K-expressing NS/0 myeloma cells exhibit increased viability and chimeric antibody productivity under perfusion culture conditions

We have shown previously that recombinant NS/0 myelomas expressing sufficient amounts of E1B-19K were resistant to apoptosis occurring in the late phase of batch culture and under stressful conditions such as cultivation in glutamine-free medium or following heat shock. However, no significant increase in monoclonal antibodies (MAb) was observed during the prolonged stationary phase of these batch cultures. Here, we show that E1B-19K can enhance cell survival and improve MAb productivity in high cell density perfusion culture. Typically, lymphoid cells grown under steady state in perfusion exhibit decreasing viabilities with concomitant accumulation of apoptotic cells. By modulating the ability of these cells to resist to induction of apoptosis in low nutrient environment, a 3-fold decrease in specific death rate from 0.22 day-1 for NS/0 control to 0.07 day-1 for E1B-19K cells was achieved, resulting in a significant improvement in cell viability throughout perfusion. E1B-19K cells at the perfusion plateau phase also exhibited a 3-fold reduction in specific growth rate concomitant with a lower percentage of S and higher percentage of G1 phase cells. This was associated with a 40% decrease in specific oxygen consumption rate, likely related to a reduction in the specific consumption rates of limiting nutrient(s). Expression of E1B-19K consequently had a significant impact on the steady-state viable cell density, allowing maintenance of 11.5 x 10(6) E1B-19K cells/mL versus 5.9 x 10(6) control NS/0 cells/mL for the same amount of fresh medium brought into the system (half a volume per day). Whereas MAb concentrations found in perfusion culture of control NS/0 myelomas were almost 3-fold higher than those found in batch culture; in the case of E1B-19K-expressing myelomas, the MAb concentration in perfusion was more than 7-fold higher than in batch. This was attributable to the 2-fold increase in viable cell plateau and to a 40% increase in the perfusion to batch ratio of specific MAb productivity (2.2-fold for E1B-19K myelomas versus 1.6-fold for NS/0 control).

Long-term production of human monoclonal antibodies by five human-mouse heterohybridomas in a serum-free medium

Four heterohybridomas (28K29, 27D57, ZLG40, and 29D38) secreting human monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) reactive with lung cancer cells and one heterohybridoma (28B49) secreting an isotype-matched MAb (IgM, lambda) were adapted and tested for long-term MAb production in serum-free medium. Three typical serum-free media were first evaluated for this purpose, based on the MAb productivity, cost, and ease of MAb purification with each, and Hybridoma-SFM, containing only insulin and transferrin as protein components, was selected as the most appropriate. In this medium, all five heterohybridomas continued to proliferate and secrete MAb throughout test periods of 144 to 200 days. Achievement of this long-term, stable production may be attributed at least in part to the effects of extensive prior subcloning and to the predominance of lambda-type light chains in the IgM antibodies produced by these heterohybridomas. The results of this study provide the basis for development of a process to produce large quantities of human MAbs, which may be useful for therapeutic or in vivo diagnostic purposes.

Influence of Substrate Hydrophobicity on the Adsorption of Collagen in the Presence of Pluronic F68, Albumin, or Calf Serum

The influence of Pluronic F68 [a poly(ethylene oxide)-poly(propylene oxide)-poly(ethylene oxide) copolymer surfactant], serum albumin (HSA), and fetal calf serum (FCS) on the adsorption of type I collagen by polymer substrates was investigated using radiolabeling and XPS analysis. Three different kinds of polystyrene substrates with increasing level of hydrophobicity were used. Change in the state of hydration of the sorbent and protein surfaces appears to be the main driving force for collagen adsorption. Pluronic F68 strongly reduces collagen adsorption, the reduction being more pronounced with higher substrate hydrophobicity. This explains why epithelial cell adhesion on substrates preconditioned with a solution of Pluronic F68 and collagen is strongly influenced by substrate hydrophobicity. Collagen adsorption is also reduced in the presence of HSA and FCS, but the reduction and its sensitivity to substrate hydrophobicity are lower than with Pluronic F68.

Integrated approaches to the design of media and feeding strategies for fed-batch cultures of animal cells

Animal cell culture has become an important approach for the production of biologically functional proteins for human therapy. The quantity and quality of protein production are influenced by the culture environment, which is subject to change over the course of cell cultivation. Therefore, it is vital to design an optimal culture environment and control it within an optimal region to maximize the productivity. This requires that the factors affecting the culture environment (nutrient concentrations, by-product accumulation, pH and osmolality) and cell growth be integrated into the design of culture media for fed-batch animal cell cultures.

Evaluation of a simple protein free medium that supports high levels of monoclonal antibody production

A simple protein free medium was formulated and tested in suspension culture using three hybridoma cell lines. The medium, referred to as CDSS (Chemically Defined Serum Substitutes), consisted of the basal medium DMEM:Ham F12, 1:1, with HEPES (D12H), plus pluronic F68, trace elements, ferric citrate, ascorbic acid, and ethanolamine. No protein or lipid components were added. All three cell lines were weaned off serum using CDSS and a commercially available protein free medium PFHM-II. Data shown here indicated that normally cells took 1-7 weeks to wean off serum and an additional 2-7 weeks to adapt to suspension culture. After adaptation the cells were able to grow well in suspension culture using both protein free media and in the main performed better than serum containing controls. The stability of the three hybridoma cells for antibody production following freeze/thaw procedures and long term subculturing was also tested. All three lines were frozen using our protein free CDSS medium (containing 0.75% bovine serum albumin and 10% dimethyl sulfoxide) in liquid nitrogen for up to one year. Cells thawed from these stocks recovered well and were able to maintain good growth and antibody production characteristics. One line was shown to grow using our protein free CDSS medium in suspension culture for 12 weeks without loss of antibody productivity.

Coupled influence of substratum hydrophilicity and surfactant on epithelial cell adhesion

The influence of substratum surface hydrophilicity and of a surfactant on human epithelial cell adhesion and protein adsorption was investigated. Therefore, tissue culture grade polystyrene (TCPS) and bacteriological grade polystyrene (BGPS) substrata were treated with different media, with or without Pluronic F68 [a poly(ethylene oxide) and poly(propylene oxide) triblock copolymer surfactant], and with or without type I collagen as a typical extracellular matrix protein. The conditioned substrata were submitted to XPS analysis and assayed for cell adhesion by inoculating Hep G2 cells in a chemically defined nutritive medium. The presence of collagen at the substratum surface is required to obtain attachment and spreading of Hep G2 cells. With PS substrata, treating with a solution of collagen does not promote cell adhesion if the solution contains Pluronic; XPS data show that this is due either to prevention of collagen adsorption or to its desorption by rinsing. With less hydrophobic TCPS substrata, the presence of Pluronic in the conditioning solution does not preclude cell adhesion, nor collagen adsorption. The effect of BGPS and TCPS substrata on Hep G2 cell adhesion is thus mediated by the presence of a surfactant that affects the adsorption of collagen.