Improving Cell Culture Methods to Advance Tissue Engineering Research

Efforts from Yale researchers offer improved cell culture methods that could lead to new advances in liver cell therapy and tissue engineering.

W. Mark Saltzman, Chair of Biomedical Engineering and Goizueta Foundation Professor of Biomedical Engineering & Chemical & Environmental Engineering, worked with Yale colleagues Diane Krause, Associate Director of the Yale Stem Cell Center, and Lichuan Qian to analyze published culture techniques for fetal liver epithelial cells (FLECs). Because these cells offer a high potential for growth and can mature into many different types of liver cells, they have clinical applications in repairing liver disease. In order to reliably obtain enough FLECs for clinical applications, however, including tissue engineering efforts, researchers must first grow the cells in culture.

In an optimal growth culture, FLECs would both grow at a high rate and readily mature into their different potential liver cell types. Saltzman and his colleagues examined the effects of growth factors used in current culture mediums on each of these metrics, along with other desired outcomes for a cell culture.

Using combinatorial media formulations, the group demonstrated that a novel medium combining two previous approaches achieved optimal proliferation and maturation of fetal epithelial liver cells.

The researchers directly compared four cell culture mediums: one previously used to support a high growth rate; one designed to encourage the cells to mature; and two that combined the original two mediums for either all or part of the culture period. After analyzing each based on the designated metrics, they found that a novel culture containing factors to encourage both growth and cell maturation did, in fact, lead to the highest levels of cell growth and maturation into different types of liver cells. The culture also performed strongly when compared to the other methods for additional desired outcomes.

The analysis, the first direct comparison of the effectiveness of various culture media for FLECs, suggests a new approach for culture methods, with future applications in cell therapy and engineering of functional liver tissue.

More reading:
Lichuan Qian, Diane S. Krause, Dr. W. Mark Saltzman. Enhanced growth and hepatic differentiation of fetal liver epithelial cells through combinational and temporal adjustment of soluble factors. Biotechnology Journal 2012 7 (3), 440-448.