Polyurethane-Modified Cell Culture Membrane
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current membrane technologies for cell cultivation, particularly for adherent cells, fail to promote and sustain adherence, expansion, and differentiation without pre-treatment with extracellular matrix components like fibronectin or collagen, leading to limitations in long-term cell culture and potential contamination risks.
Innovation Solution
A membrane composed of a novel combination of polysulfone, polyethersulfone, polyarylethersulfone, polyvinylpyrrolidone, and polyurethane, which allows for cell attachment and proliferation without the need for pre-treatment with extracellular matrix components, providing a hydrophilic and semipermeable surface for cell culture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If membranes are pre-coated with extracellular matrix components like collagen or fibronectin to support adherent cell growth, then cell adhesion and proliferation are improved, but contamination risk and process complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the need for pre-coating with extracellular matrix components by incorporating polyurethane directly into the membrane structure during manufacturing. This removes the separate coating step and the associated contamination risks while maintaining cell adhesion support.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameter of the membrane by incorporating polyurethane (0.1-10% by weight), which fundamentally alters the surface properties to support cell adhesion without requiring additional coating layers.
2Duration of action of stationary object
If membranes are pre-coated with extracellular matrix components to enable long-term cell culture, then cell differentiation and morphology are maintained, but process complexity and manufacturing steps increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the function of cell adhesion support and long-term culture maintenance into the base membrane structure itself through polyurethane incorporation. This combines multiple functions (structural support, cell adhesion, long-term culture capability) into a single integrated component, eliminating separate pre-coating processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary action by incorporating polyurethane into the membrane during the manufacturing process itself, rather than requiring post-manufacturing pre-coating steps. This ensures the membrane is ready for immediate use in long-term cell culture without additional preparation.
3Productivity
If conventional membranes are used for adherent cell culture, then cell growth is possible, but cell morphology is lost and differentiation ability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameter by incorporating polyurethane, which modifies the surface energy and topography to maintain cell morphology and differentiation ability while still supporting robust cell growth.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The membrane supports high-performance cell attachment, expansion, and differentiation, maintaining typical cell morphology and integrity, while reducing the risk of contamination and process complexity, enabling long-term cell culture and bioproduct production.
Implementation Method 1
the resulting surface characteristics further allow the membrane to be used without any pre-treatment with surface modifying substances
Implementation Method 2
The molecular weight cut-off of the membrane permits nutrients and oxygen to reach the cells without allowing the cells to escape
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 2A~2B
Figure 3~4C
AI summary
The invention relates to a membrane which can be used for cultivating cells, in particular adherent cells, wherein said membrane allows for the adhesion and proliferation of the cells based on its specific composition comprising polyurethane and the resulting surface characteristics further allow the membrane to be used without any pre-treatment with surface modifying substances. The invention further relates to a method for preparing a membrane which can be used for cultivating cells, in particular adherent cells, and to methods of using such membrane for cultivating cells, in particular adherent cells.