A hydraulic cell stretching device comprising a source of variable pressured hydraulic fluid hydraulically coupled to a flexing chamber. The flexing chamber has at least one cell well. The cell well has a membrane subjected to the variable pressured hydraulic fluid.

Hematopoietic stem cells are extremely difficult to maintain or expand in vitro. Two observations in traditional long-term bone marrow cultures strongly suggest that macrophages may be at the root of the problem: First, micromolar concentrations of hydrocortisone improve the longevity of long-term bone marrow cultures and hydrocortisone is known as a potent inhibitor of macrophage production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, enzymes, nitrogen oxide and reactive oxygen species and redirects macrophages to the anti-inflammatory differentiation pathway; Second, the decline of hematopoiesis in long-term bone marrow cultures coincides with the development of large numbers of adherent and non-adherent macrophages including foreign body giant cells. These adherent macrophages and foreign body giant cells exhibit well-spread morphology, contain numerous lysosomes and phagolysosomes in the cytoplasm and are metabolically active. We hypothesize that hydrocortisone fails to suppress all aspects of macrophage pro-inflammatory activation/differentiation, resulting in the production of inhibitors or toxins of hematopoiesis. Macrophage adhesion in cell culture depends on serum proteins pre-adsorbed to the tissue-culture-treated polystyrene (TC-PS), which adsorbs proteins via mostly hydrophilic interactions. TC-PS is used in almost all tissue culture devices currently available. Cellular adhesion provides a strong stimulus for metabolic, mitotic and certain gene activities. Therefore, we seek to reduce macrophage adhesion and activation by culturing bone marrow cells in tissue culture devices composed of or covered with polymers with very different protein-binding characteristics than TC-PS such as polyethylene (PE) and other polyolefins, the latter bind proteins via exclusively hydrophobic interactions. As a result, polyolefins bind different proteins and in lower quantities than TC-PS. Furthermore, PE does not contain additional chemical features like the phenolic rings of polystyrene that might contribute to protein binding and macrophage adhesion/activation. Using these new culture devices, we developed a drastically different long-term bone marrow culture, the Low Macrophage-Adhesion/Activation (LoMAC) bone marrow culture. In LoMAC bone marrow culture, hematopoiesis continues for months to over a year and hematopoietic stem cells are amplified gradually. In stark contrast to traditional long-term bone marrow cultures, de novo erythropoiesis and megakaryocytopoiesis proceed robustly in the LoMAC bone marrow culture and B-lymphocyte and natural killer cell progenitors can b

Disclosed are multi-well plate inserts that can be used to separate solid debris, including paper punch containing a blood sample, from a liquid containing target biological molecules, such as nucleic acid molecules and proteins. Also provided are methods of using the insert, for example as part of a method that analyzes target biological molecules.

The cell structure producing apparatus capable of properly piercing a cell aggregate and a cell tray are demanded. The object of the present invention is achieved by a cell structure producing apparatus that includes a movable needle-shaped body and sticks and penetrates a cell aggregate held on a cell tray, wherein the cell tray includes a frame having an opening, and a porous member that is supported at the opening by the frame and on which the cell aggregate is placeable, and a tip of the needle-shaped body is capable of penetrating through the porous member when the needle-shaped body sticks and penetrates the cell aggregate.

Provided is a method for producing a cell laminate including cell layers on both surfaces of a porous membrane, using a vessel having a bottom portion and a side wall portion standing from a periphery of the bottom portion, the porous membrane, and a holding member configured to hold the porous membrane such that the porous membrane faces an inner bottom surface of the vessel and is held at a position that does not contact the inner bottom surface, the method including culturing first cells in a liquid medium that contacts the inner bottom surface of the vessel and a surface of the porous membrane, in a state in which the porous membrane is held, by the holding member, at a position that does not contact the inner bottom surface of the vessel so as to face the inner bottom surface, and in which the bottom portion of the vessel is positioned at the upper side while the porous membrane is positioned at the lower side in a direction of gravity; and culturing the first cells at a lower surface of the porous membrane and culturing second cells at an upper surface of the porous membrane, in a state in which the porous membrane is held, by the holding member, at a position that does not contact the inner bottom surface of the vessel so as to face the inner bottom surface, and in which the bottom portion of the vessel is positioned at the lower side while the porous membrane is positioned at the upper side in the direction of gravity.

A perfusion culture apparatus, capable of culturing cells having a multilayer structure, includes (i) a film, which is a sheet-shaped carrier on which cells are seeded in a state in which a liquid medium is allowed to pass through the sheet-shaped carrier; (ii) a vessel, which holds the film in a state in which the liquid medium is in contact with front and rear surfaces of the film; and (iii) a gas chamber, which applies pressure from outside to the liquid medium on the side in contact with either of the front and rear surfaces of the film to form a pressure difference between the liquid medium on the side in contact with the one surface and the liquid medium on the side in contact with the other surface, the liquid medium passing through the film in accordance with the pressure difference.

Provided herein are microtiter plates, systems, and uses thereof. In particular, provided herein are microtiter plates with diffusion channels and their use in co-culture applications (e.g. in high throughput screening).

In the present invention, a reactor (2) for direct conversion of microalgae in a growth medium into biofuels, prevents energy consumption, reduce operating costs, reduce thermal stress, and provide simultaneous separation of polar and nonpolar compounds and salts is disclosed. The reactor (2) subject to the present invention comprises at least one compartment (1) containing a plate-shaped catalytic membrane (3) and two cells, a warm water inlet (5), a warm water outlet (6), a wet microalgae inlet (7), a liquid products and unconverted wet algae outlet (8).

An apparatus for collecting or culturing cells or cell colonies includes: a common substrate formed from a flexible resilient polymeric material and having a plurality of wells formed therein; and a plurality of rigid cell carriers releasably connected to said common substrate, with said carriers arranged in the form of an array, and with each of the carriers resiliently received in one of the wells. A method of collecting or culturing cells or cell colonies with such an apparatus is carried out by depositing a liquid media carrying cells on the apparatus so that said cells settle on or adhere to said the carriers; and then (c) releasing at least one selected carrier having said cells thereon by gradual application of release energy to each carrier from the cavity in which it is received (e.g., by pushing with a probe).

Disclosed herein is a bioreactor system that allows perfusive flow through a porous support medium enabling 3D growth of biological samples. In some embodiments, the system comprises a sample well filled with a three-dimensional (3D) cell growth medium. The system can further comprises a liquid medium reservoir fluidly connected to the sample well by a first filter material. The system can further comprises a medium collection chamber fluidly connected to the sample well by a second filter material. The system can further comprise an absorbant material that creates an osmotic pressure gradient to produce perfusive flow. In some embodiments, osmotic pressure draws fluid from the liquid medium reservoir, through the first filter material, into the sample well where it permeates the three-dimensional cell growth medium, through the second filter material, and finally into the medium collection chamber.