The present invention is directed generally to dry cell culture media or feeds in pellet formats which can be reconstituted into liquid media for culturing cells in vitro. Each pellet composition may comprise the same or a different composition; for example, different vitamins, amino acids, buffers, trace salts, pH, iron chelators, etc. The invention also relates to methods of making dry cell culture media by altering ratios of different pellet compositions, or, methods of making modular dry cell culture media, or customizing media formulations for growing a cell type using pellets. The media pellets may be easier to handle either before reconstitution, during shipping and handling; and/or during reconstitution. Media pellets may be used in any container like bags including sterile, single use bags for preparing media formulations. The invention also relates to kits and culture systems using media pellets.

The subject invention concerns materials and methods for culture of cell aggregates. The subject invention utilizes three-dimensional (3-D) inserts comprising micro-channels having selected dimensions. The inserts are provided in or on tissue culture plates that can be supported on a programmable rocking platform/station, thereby providing for a hydrodynamic environment that promotes 3-D aggregation of cells cultured on the plates. The supporting rocker is programmed to provide motion that generates hydrodynamic conditions that support 3-D cell aggregation and long-term culture. The subject invention also concerns an apparatus comprising a tissue culture vessel that comprises a 3-D insert of the present invention, and a programmable rocking platform/station that can provide motion to the vessel provided thereon, thereby generating hydrodynamic conditions and wave motion that support 3-D cell aggregation and cell culture. The subject invention also concerns methods for growing 3-D aggregates of cells.

When detachment of a cell sheet from a culture dish has started at an unintended timing, immediately detach the cell sheet from the culture dish while preventing generation of wrinkles and the like in the cell sheet. A cell culture device captures an image of cells in the culture dish, and controls a cooling mechanism and a shaking mechanism based on the image so as to shake the cells while cooling them.

Embodiments of a cell culture incubator system provided herein have two or more individual incubators and atmospheric regulation system configured to regulate atmospheric conditions within the environmental chamber of each individual incubator. The atmospheric regulation system has a single integrated controller system that controls atmospheric regulation of each of the individual incubators independently of the one or more other individual incubators. Atmospheric conditions within each of the individual incubators include at least the oxygen level and the total gas pressure, which are regulated independently of each other.

A system for controlling a motion of a cell culture includes a tray adapted to hold a cell culture, a camera adapted to capture an image of the cell culture, and a device adapted to control a movement of the tray. The system also includes a processor adapted to determine a first movement of the tray, receive from the camera data representing an image of the cell culture, determine a characteristic of the cell culture based on the image data, determine a second movement of the tray based on the characteristic, the second movement being different from the first movement, and cause the tray to move in accordance with the second movement.

A stirring apparatus including a stirring mechanism configured to execute a stirring process on cells in a culture vessel, and a control unit programmed to at least one of control the stirring mechanism, determine the stirring process of the stirring mechanism, and determine whether the stirring process is performed or not.

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a cell culture monitoring device and a culture monitoring method. The cell culture monitoring device includes: a culture vessel configured to receive a culture medium of a cell sheet; and an image acquisition apparatus configured to acquire an image of the cell sheet in the culture vessel to monitor growth status of the cell sheet.

Provided herein are seed train processes and methods of producing a recombinant protein that include the use of these seed train processes.

Disclosed are methods of preparing a high-quality sheet-shaped cell culture by preventing breakage of a sheet-shaped cell culture that is caused by adhesion, sticking and/or shrinkage of the sheet-shaped cell culture as a result of detaching, transferring or preserving the sheet-shaped cell culture. Also disclosed are methods of detaching, cleaning, and/or preserving a sheet-shaped cell culture, including soaking a sheet-shaped cell culture in a low nutrient isotonic solution.

A bioreactor system (1A; 1B) includes a variable volume container (3) having a flexible outer wall (27, 29) defining a cell-culture chamber for containing a fluid culture medium, and anchorage dependent cells in suspension. A agitator unit of the system (1A; 1B) is in fluid communication with first, second and third fluid ports (43, 45, 47A; 47B) for performing controlled replenishment of the culture medium in the cell-culture chamber, to admit fresh nutritive culture medium into the cell-culture chamber and for allowing draining of waste culture medium from the cell-culture chamber. The agitator unit further has a roller (15) for pinching the outer wall of the variable volume container (3) to thereby increase its a volume that forms the cell-culture chamber, starting from the initial minimum volume area (23), and means for gently agitating the cell-culture chamber.