Supplements in Cell Culture
Discover our selection of cell culture supplements, which are essential additives for customizing culture media. They include hormones, amino acids, vitamins and reagents, and are crucial for the culture of various cell types. These supplements play a key role in the proliferation, differentiation and angiogenesis of cultured cells.
The role of cell culture supplements in biomedical research
Cell culture supplements are additives used in cell culture media to support specific applications and customize media with defined characteristics. These supplements include essential hormone supplements, amino acids, vitamins, antibiotics, and reagents qualified for hybridoma and insect cell culture. They can also include growth factors and cytokines critical for cell culture media components, particularly when serum-and animal-free conditions or defined media are required. There are different types of cell culture supplements available, including those for mammalian, plant, and microbial cell culture.
Some common supplements include:
- Serum: Fetal bovine serum (FBS) is a widely used supplement for mammalian cell culture, but alternatives such as bovine serum, human serum, and serum from other species are also available.
- Attachment factors: These mimic the extracellular matrix (ECM) and provide important cues to cultured cells.
- Growth factors: Purified, recombinant growth factors and cytokines are critical for proliferation, differentiation, and angiogenesis studies.
- Hormones: Essential cell culture-grade hormone supplements include dexamethasone, erythropoietin, β-Estradiol, glucagon, hydrocortisone, insulin, progesterone, prostaglandin E1 & E2.
- Amino acids: High-purity amino acids and derivatives are important for metabolomic pathways and protein synthesis
- Vitamins: Vitamins are essential for cell function, growth, and regeneration
- Sodium bicarbonate: A common buffer used in cell culture to maintain pH and provide some nutritional benefits
- Serum-free media supplements: These are used for specialized cells and tissues, such as neurons, stem cells, and organoids
