Highly efficient devices and methods for culturing cells

Abstract

This invention relates to methods and devices that improve cell culture efficiency. They include the use of gas permeable culture compartments that reduce the use of space while maintaining uniform culture conditions, and are more suitable for automated liquid handling. They include the integration of gas permeable materials into the traditional multiple shelf format to resolve the problem of non-uniform culture conditions. They include culture devices that use surfaces comprised of gas permeable, plasma charged silicone and can integrate traditional attachment surfaces, such as those comprised of traditional tissue culture treated polystyrene. They include culture devices that integrate gas permeable, liquid permeable membranes. A variety of benefits accrue, including more optimal culture conditions during scale up and more efficient use of inventory space, incubator space, and disposal space. Furthermore, labor and contamination risk are reduced.

Description

RELATED APPLICATION[0001]The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60 / 873,347 filed Dec. 7, 2006, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.[0002]Each of the applications and patents cited in this text, as well as each document or reference cited in each of the applications and patents (including during the prosecution of each issued patent; “application cited documents”), and each of the PCT and foreign applications or patents corresponding to and / or claiming priority from any of these applications and patents, and each of the documents cited or referenced in each of the application cited documents, and all of the patents and co-pending applications naming John Wilson as an inventor, are hereby expressly incorporated herein by reference. More generally, documents or references are cited in this text, and, each of these documents or references (“herein-cited references”), as well as each document or reference cited in each of the ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0012]The present invention overcomes many of the disadvantages of existing static cell culture devices by integrating at least two gas permeable culture compartments that, at least in part, maintain a gas space between them in order to allow gas to contact the gas permeable area of the culture compartments. This allows each culture compartment to exchange gas directly with the gas space adjacent to the culture compartment, minimizing the potential for non-uniform culture conditions. Selected surfaces of the culture compartments can be made gas permeable to provide gas exchange on the surface opposite cells and / or adjacent to cells. Surfaces inside the culture compartments can be comprised of various materials to provide optimal surfaces for cells to reside upon. Surface area inside the culture compartments can be increased if desired, such as may be the case when adherent cells or cells that thrive in a three dimensional matrix are cultured. It is also possible for cells to reside directly upon the gas permeable material of the culture compartments. Scaling the device can be accomplished by adding culture compartments such that, at least in part, a gas space exists between each culture compartment in order to allow gas to contact the gas permeable area of the culture compartments. Access to the culture compartments can occur by way of a common manifold, common manifolds, or by discrete access to each compartment. With this configuration, it is possible to scale cultures in a simple format that is easy to use, makes efficient use of space, and minimizes the potential for non-uniform culture conditions to occur. Various features can be included, and configurations can be structured, to provide additional benefits including the ability for the device to be operated in more than one position, allow the culture of adherent cells, allow the culture of suspension cells, allow co-culture, prevent cells from exiting their respective culture compartments during routine handling, minimizing feeding frequency, replicate traditional flask protocols, allow the surface area for cells to reside upon to be increased or decreased during culture, allow the ratio of medium volume to the surface area for cells to reside upon to be increased or decreased during culture, and / or to allow the cells to reside on or in proximity of alternative materials.

[0020]In another aspect of the present invention, structure is provided to prevent walls of the culture compartments from making contact with neighboring walls of the culture compartment.

[0024]In another aspect of the present invention, a method of expanding cells from one culture compartment to multiple culture compartments is possible.

[0027]In another aspect of the present invention, a method of co-culturing cells is possible by seeding cells to a culture surface and repositioning the device to allow another inoculum of cells to gravitate to a different culture surface.

[0029]In another aspect of the present invention, culture compartments are fabricated as an integral unit to minimize the number of seals.

[0032]In another aspect of the present invention, structuring gas permeable devices with plasma charged silicone for the purpose of minimizing migration to other surfaces is disclosed.

Problems solved by technology

Thus, flasks have a large device volume relative to the amount of medium they contain.

As more and more flasks are used during culture scale up, the overall amount of space they occupy relative to the small medium volume and limited culture surface area they provide creates an inherently inefficient use of space that burdens the culture process with excess cost related to shipping, sterilization, storage, incubator space, and disposal.

This problem is compounded by the substantially increased labor and contamination risk.

Therefore, the multi-shelved flask design has an inherent potential for non-uniform culture conditions to exist throughout the device and the problem is compounded during scale up.

Thus, they quickly become unwieldy and outsize cell culture incubators during scale up.

Unfortunately, the proposal merely increases the number of culture compartments in the horizontal direction.

None of these gas permeable devices are capable of scaling in the vertical direction.

However, although the flow of medium is substantially lowered, as it is only needed to carry substrates such as glucose, it precludes the ability to culture suspension cells since they will be washed from the device during use.

Another disadvantage is the need to perfuse the gas space and / or the liquid space.

This requires pumps, fluid lines, and a greatly elevated level of complexity relative to traditional multiple shelf flasks.

Thus, this approach has not been commercialized.

Attributes not possible in the traditional multi-shelved flask are present.

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