A BIOPROCESS FOR PRODUCING UNIFORM EMBRYOID BODIES FROM EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS IN A HIGH DENSITY BIOREACTOR

摘要

The present inventors identified aggregation of embryonic stem cells andembryoid bodies (EBs) as the cause of the difficulty in generating largenumbers of the embryonic stem cells (ES) cell-derived tissues. To counterthis, the invention provides a novel bioprocess where aggregation of spheroid-forming cells, such as embryonic stem cells and spheroids, such as EBs iscontrolled, such as by encapsulation of within a matrix. As a result, EBs canbe generated with high efficiency and cultured in high cell density, well-mixed systems. Well-mixed conditions facilitate measurement and control of thebulk media conditions and allow for the use of scalable bioreactor systems forclinical production of tissue. Therefore, the invention enables generation ofES cell-derived tissue on a clinical scale. The invention is also applicableto any spheroid-forming cells and other types of pluripotent cells.