On-line characterization of a hybridoma cell culture process

The on-line determination of the physiological state of a cell culture process requires reliable on-line measurements of various parameters and calculations of specific rates from these measurements. The cell concentration of a hybridoma culture was estimated on-line by measuring optical density (OD) with a laser turbidity probe. The oxygen uptake rate (OUR) was determined by monitoring dynamically dissolved oxygen concentration profiles and closing oxygen balances in the culture. The base addition for neutralizing lactate produced by cells was also monitored on-line via a balance. Using OD and OUR measurements, the specific growth and specific oxygen consumption rates were determined on-line. By combining predetermined stoichiometric relationships among oxygen and glucose consumption and lactate production, the specific glucose consumption and lactate production rates were also calculated on-line. Using these on-line measurements and calculations, the hybridoma culture process was characterized on-line by identifying the physiological states. They will also facilitate the implementation of nutrient feeding strategies for fed-batch and perfusion cultures. (c) 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

杂交瘤细胞培养中摄氧速率(OUR)的在线检测及其与细胞生长及代谢的关系

在批式及灌流培养条件下研究了杂交瘤细胞在无血清培养基中的生长、代谢情况与氧消耗的关系。应用动力学方法在线进行OUR的检测,同时离线取样检测其他参数。结果发现OUR与谷氨酰胺的消耗、抗体的生成及活细胞密度间有明显的相关关系,进一步的分析还发现在对数生长期,OUR与活细胞密度间具有良好的线性关系,qOUR(0.103±0.028)×10^-12mol/cell/h,可以通过它来进行细胞密度的在线检测。并通过以ΔOUR=0时刻作为灌流调整点进行连续灌流培养的初步实验验证了OUR作为培养过程反馈控制参数的可能性。     

Optimization of HEK-293S cell cultures for the production of adenoviral vectors in bioreactors using on-line OUR measurements

The culture of HEK-293S cells in a stirred tank bioreactor for adenoviral vectors production for gene therapy is studied. Process monitoring using oxygen uptake rate (OUR) was performed. The OUR was determined on-line by the dynamic method, providing good information of the process evolution. OUR enabled cell activity monitoring, facilitating as well the determination of the feeding rate in perfusion cultures and when to infect the culture. Batch cultures were used to validate the monitoring methodology. A cell density of 10 × 10⁵ cell/mL was infected, producing 1.3 × 10⁹ infectious viral particles/mL (IVP/mL).To increase cell density values maintaining cell specific productivity, perfusion cultures, based on tangential flow filtration, were studied. In this case, OUR measurements were used to optimize the dynamic culture medium feeding strategy, addressed to avoid any potential nutrient limitation. Furthermore, the infection protocol was defined in order to optimize the use of the viral inoculum, minimizing the uncontrolled release of particles through the filter unit mesh. All these developments enabled an infection at 78 × 10⁵ cell/mL with the consequent production of 44 × 10⁹ IVP/mL, representing a cell specific productivity 4.3 times higher than for the batch culture.     

Cell cycle- and growth phase-dependent variations in size distribution, antibody productivity, and oxygen demand in hybridoma cultures

Simultaneous determination of cell size and DNA content of hybridomas (HB-32) revealed a direct correlation between average cell volume and progression through the cell cycle. Pseudocontinuous experiments showed that G(1) cells, as estimated from cell size measurements, secreted monoclonal antibody at rates higher than those of cells in other stages of interphase and mitosis. Similarly, fed-batch and batch experiments suggested that specific oxygen uptake rate (qO(2)) is also a function of cell cycle, being minimum for cells in G(0) and G(1) phase. In batch cultures, HB-32 showed a rapid decrease in oxygen uptake rate (OUR) just prior to reaching maximum cell concentration. The OUR steadily increased from 0.01-0.05 to 0.5-0.7 mmol O(2)/L h as the cells went from the lag to the midexponential phase. The qO(2) increased from 0.3 x 10(-10)-0.9 x 10(-10) mmol O(2)/cell h at inoculation to 3.3 x 10(-10)-3.7 x 10(-10) mmol O(2)/cell h during the early exponential phase where it remained relatively constant. Several hours before maximum cell concentration was reached, OUR and qO(2) rapidly decreased to levels below those observed at inoculation. The time at which the shift in OUR and qO(2) occurred and the onset of decrease in the average cell size corresponded to the time of glutamine depletion. Based on monitoring OUR on-line in batch cultures, glutamine was supplemented, resulting in increased cell concentration, extension of culture viability, and increased MAb concentration.     

应用动力学方法在线检测Vero细胞培养过程中的摄氧率

流加和灌注培养已被广泛应用于动物细胞培养 ,以获得高活性、高密度的细胞和高的产物得率。在这些培养过程中 ,一般通过离线检测关键参数 (如细胞密度、营养和代谢产物的浓度 )来人为调整灌注速率和补料策略 ,但是 ,当细胞密度较高时 ,由于细胞代谢旺盛使得培养的微环境变化很快 ,这就需要更加频繁快速地调整操作条件 ,从而导致因频繁取样和离线分析所带来的污染危险及大量人力、物力的浪费。这在大规模细胞培养过程中是不可取的。因此 ,要建立大规模、高效动物细胞培养过程 ,有必要研究和探索在线检测技术 ,以实时掌握细胞培养过程所处的状…     

On-line monitoring of respiration in recombinant-baculovirus infected and uninfected insect cell bioreactor cultures

Respiration rates in Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf-9) cell bioreactor cultures were successfully measured on-line using two methods: The O(2) uptake rate (OUR) was determined using gas phase pO(2) values imposed by a dissolved oxygen controller and the CO(2) evolution rate (CER) was measured using an infrared detector. The measurement methods were accurate, reliable, and relatively inexpensive. The CER was routinely determined in bioreactor cultures used for the production of several recombinant proteins. Simple linear relationships between viable cell densities and both OUR and CER in exponentially growing cultures were used to predict viable cell density. Respiration measurements were also used to follow the progress of baculoviral infections in Sf-9 cultures. Infection led to increases in volumetric and per-cell respiration rates. The relationships between respiration and several other culture parameters, including viable cell density, cell protein, cell volume, glucose consumption, lactate production, viral titer, and recombinant beta-galactosidase accumulation, were examined. The extent of the increase in CER following infection and the time postinfection at which maximum CER was attained were negatively correlated with the multiplicity of infection (MOI) at multiplicities below the level required to infect all the cells in a culture. Delays in the respiration peak related to the MOI employed were correlated with delays in the peak in recombinant protein accumulation. DO levels in the range 5-100% did not exert any major effects on viable cell densities, CER, or product titer in cultures infected with a baculovirus expressing recombinant beta-galactosidase. (c) 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The use of culture redox potential and oxygen uptake rate for assessing glucose and glutamine depletion in hybridoma cultures

Culture redox potential (CRP) and oxygen uptake rate (OUR) were monitored on-line during glucose- and glutamine-limited batch cultures of a murine hybridoma cell line that secretes a neutralizing monoclonal antibody specific to toxin 2 of the scorpion Centruroides noxius Hoffmann. It was found that OUR and CRP can be used for assessing the viable cell concentration and growth phases of the culture. Before nutrient depletion, OUR increased exponentially with viable cell concentration, whereas CRP decreased monotonically until cell viability started to decrease. During the death phase, CRP gradually increased. A sudden decrease in OUR occurred upon glucose or glutamine depletion. CRP traced the dissolved oxygen profile during a control action or an operational eventuality, however, during nutrient depletion it did not follow the expected behavior of a system composed mainly by the O(2)/H(2)O redox couple. Such a behavior was not due to the accumulated lactate or ammonia, nor to possible intracellular redox potential changes caused by nutrient depletion, as inferred from respiration inhibition by rotenone or uncoupled respiration by 2,4-dinitrophenol. As shown in this study, operational eventualities can be erroneously interpreted as changes in OUR when using algorithms based solely on oxygen balances. However, simultaneous measurements of CRP and OUR may be used to discriminate real metabolic events from operational failures. The results presented here can be used in advanced real-time algorithms for controling glucose and glutamine at low concentrations, avoiding under- or over-feeding them in hybridoma cultures, and consequently reducing the accumulation of metabolic wastes and improving monoclonal antibody production. (c) 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Biotechnol Bioeng 56: 555-563, 1997.     

On line estimation of oxygen uptake rate for insect cells growing in a modified spinner flask

The simple design of traditional spinner flasks makes the on-line estimation of cellular metabolism impossible. An on-line estimation system has been developed and used for the monitoring of oxygen uptake rate (OUR) for insect cells growing in a modified spinner flask. Neglect of oxygen desorption from culture media is a common source of error in OUR measurements for Sf21 cells. Therefore, an algorithm was developed to compensate for the affect of such desorption process on the determination of OUR. A modified spinner flask was successfully used as a low-volume bioreactor for insect cell cultivation and the OUR measurement developed here is both convenient and reliable.     

A new method for on-line measurement of the volumetric oxygen uptake rate in membrane aerated animal cell cultures

Oxygen is a key substrate in animal cell metabolism and its consumption is thus a parameter of great interest for bioprocess monitoring and control. A system for measuring it based on an oxygen balance on the liquid phase was developed. The use of a gas-permeable membrane offered the possibility to provide the required quantity of oxygen into the culture, while avoiding problems of foaming or shear stress generally linked to sparging. This aeration system allowed moreover to keep a known and constant k(L)a value through cultures up to 400 h. Oxygen uptake rate (OUR) was measured on-line with a very good accuracy of +/-5%, and the specific OUR for a CHO cell line was determined during batch (growth phase) and continuous culture as, respectively, equal to 2. 85x10(-13) and 2.54x10(-13) mol O(2) cell(-1) h(-1). It was also shown that OUR continuous monitoring gives actually more information about the metabolic state of the culture than the cell concentration itself, especially during transition phases like the end of the growth phase in a batch culture.     

Alteration of mammalian cell metabolism by dynamic nutrient feeding

The metabolism of hybridoma cells was controlled to reduce metabolic formation in fed-batch cultures by dynamically feeding a salt-free nutrient concentrate. For this purpose, on-line oxygen uptake rate (OUR) measurement was used to estimate the metabolic demand of hybridoma cells and to determine the feeding rate of a concentrated solution of salt-free DMEM/F12 medium supplemented with other medium components. The ratios among glucose, glutamine and other medium components in the feeding nutrient concentrate were adjusted stoichiometrically to provide balanced nutrient conditions for cell growth. Through on-line control of the feeding rate of the nutrient concentrate, both glucose and glutamine concentrations were maintained at low levels of 0.5 and 0.2 mM respectively during the growth stage. The concentrations of the other essential amino acids were also maintained without large fluctuations. The cell metabolism was altered from that observed in batch cultures resulting in a significant reduction of lactate, ammonia and alanine production. Compared to a previously reported fed-batch culture in which only glucose was maintained at a low level and only a reduced lactate production was observed, this culture has also reduced the production of other metabolites, such as ammonium and alanine. As a result, a high viable cell concentration of more than 1.0 × 10⁷ cells/mL was achieved and sustained over an extended period. The results demonstrate an efficient nutrient feeding strategy for controlling cell metabolism to achieve and sustain a high viable cell concentration in fed-batch mammalian cell cultures in order to enhance the productivity. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

High viable cell concentration fed-batch cultures of hybridoma cells through on-line nutrient feeding

A hybridoma cell line was cultivated in fed-batch cultures using a low-protein, serum-free medium. On-line oxygen uptake rate (OUR) measurement was used to adjust the nutrient feeding rate based on glucose consumption, which was estimated on-line using the stoichiometric relations between glucose and oxygen consumption. Through on-line control of the nutrient feeding rate, not only sufficients were supplied for cell growth and antibody production, but also the concentrations of glucose and other important nutrients such as amino acids were maintained at low levels during the cell growth phase. During the cultivation, cell metabolism changed from high lactate production and low oxygen consumption to low lactate production and high oxygen consumption. As a result the accumulation of lactate was reduced and the growth phase was extended. In comparison with the batch cultures, in which cells reached a concentration of approximately 2 x 10(6) cells/mL, a very high concentration of 1.36 x 10(7) cells/mL with a high cell viability (>90%) was achieved in the fed-batch culture. By considering the consumption of glucose and amino acids, as well as the production of cell mass, metabolites, and antibodies, a well-closed material balance was established. Our results demonstrate the value of coupling on-line OUR measurement and the stoichiometric realations for dynamic nutrient feeding in high cell concentration fed batch cultures. (c) 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

On-line monitoring of the progress of infection in Sf-9 insect cell cultures using relative permittivity measurements

The use of on-line relative permittivity (epsilon') measurements for monitoring cultures of Sf-9 cells was evaluated in a batch culture and a batch infected with a baculovirus expressing beta-galactosidase. It was found that viable cell density and volume essentially accounted for all the variation in epsilon' in both non-infected and synchronously infected cultures, indicating that the epsilon' of a cell suspension was sensitive only to changes in the viable cell population. Additionally the parameter provided clearly defined signposts of the progress of the infection.     

Potassium transport in normal and transformed mouse 3T3 cells

The components of unidirectional K influx and efflux have been investigated in the 3T3 cell and the SV40 transformed 3T3 cell in exponential and stationary growth phase. Over the cell densities used for transport experiments the 3T3 cell goes from exponential growth to density dependent inhibition of growth (4 × 10⁴ to 4 × 10⁵ cell cm^?2) whereas the SV40 3T3 maintains exponential or near exponential growth (4 × 10⁴ to 1 × 10⁶ cell cm^?2). In agreement with previous observations, volume per cell and mg protein per cell decrease with increasing cell density. Thus, transport measurements have been expressed on a per volume basis. Total unidirectional K influx and efflux in the 3T3 cell is approximately double that of the SV40 3T3 cell at all cell densities investigated. Both cell types have similar volumes initially and show similar decreases with increasing cell density. Thus, in this clone of the 3T3 cell SV40 transformation specifically decreases unidirectional K flux. The magnitude of the total K flux does not change substantially for either cell line during transition from sparse to dense cultures. However, the components of the K transport undergo distinct changes. Both cell lines possess a ouabain sensitive component of K influx, presumably representing the active inward K pump. Both also possess components of K influx and efflux sensitive to furosemide. The data suggest this component represents a one-for-one K exchange mechanism. The fraction of K influx mediated by the ouabain sensitive component is reduced to one half its value when exponential versus density inhibited 3T3 cells are compared (63% versus 31% of total influx). No comparable drop occurs in the SV40 3T3 cell at equivalent cell densities (64% versus 56% of total influx). Thus, the pump mediated component of K influx would appear to be correlated with growth. In contrast, the furosemide sensitive component represents approximately 20% of the total unidirectional K influx and efflux in both cell lines in sparse culture. At high cell densities, where growth inhibition occurs in the 3T3 cell but not the SV40 3T3, the furosemide sensitive component doubles in both cell lines. Thus, the apparent K-K exchange mechanism is density dependent rather than growth dependent.     

Quantitative modeling of viable cell density,cell size,intracellular conductivity,and membrane capacitance in batch and fed‐batch CHO processes using dielectric spectroscopy

Dielectric spectroscopy was used to analyze typical batch and fed‐batch CHO cell culture processes. Three methods of analysis (linear modeling, Cole–Cole modeling, and partial least squares regression), were used to correlate the spectroscopic data with routine biomass measurements [viable packed cell volume, viable cell concentration (VCC), cell size, and oxygen uptake rate (OUR)]. All three models predicted offline biomass measurements accurately during the growth phase of the cultures. However, during the stationary and decline phases of the cultures, the models decreased in accuracy to varying degrees. Offline cell radius measurements were unsuccessfully used to correct for the deviations from the linear model, indicating that physiological changes affecting permittivity were occurring. The β‐dispersion was analyzed using the Cole–Cole distribution parameters Δε (magnitude of the permittivity drop), f_c (critical frequency), and α (Cole–Cole parameter). Furthermore, the dielectric parameters static internal conductivity (σ_i) and membrane capacitance per area (C_m) were calculated for the cultures. Finally, the relationship between permittivity, OUR, and VCC was examined, demonstrating how the definition of viability is critical when analyzing biomass online. The results indicate that the common assumptions of constant size and dielectric properties used in dielectric analysis are not always valid during later phases of cell culture processes. The findings also demonstrate that dielectric spectroscopy, while not a substitute for VCC, is a complementary measurement of viable biomass, providing useful auxiliary information about the physiological state of a culture. © 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 2010     

火炬松胚性细胞悬浮培养物的生长参数变化

以火炬松（PinustaedaL.）成熟合子胚来源的胚性愈伤组织为材料建立了胚性细胞悬浮系,测定了其培养物的鲜重、干重、细胞体积和胚数及培养液中的pH值、电导率和蔗糖浓度等生长参数在培养过程中的变化动态。结果表明,在培养周期内,培养液中的pH值、电导率和蔗糖浓度的逐步降低与培养物的鲜重、干重、细胞体积和胚胎数的逐步增加保持一致性。在培养至18—21d,pH值、电导率和蔗糖浓度均接近或降到最低点,而胚数及细胞体积的增长都达到最高点。     

Determination of the respiration quotient in mammalian cell culture in bicarbonate buffered media

The determination of the respiration quotient (RQ = CER/OUR) has not been used so far as a tool for understanding animal cell metabolism. This is due to problems in measuring the carbon dioxide evolution rate (CER) rather than the oxygen uptake rate (OUR). The determination of the CER is complicated by the use of bicarbonate in the medium. Using liquid and gas balances we have derived an equation for continuous culture to quantify the amount of CO(2) that comes from the bicarbonate in the feed. Under cell-free conditions, values predicted by this equation agree within 4% with the experimental results. In continuous culture using hybridoma cells, the CO(2) from the feed, as determined by an IR-gas analyzer, was found to represent a significant amount of the total measured CO(2) in the off-gas (50% in a suboptimal, and 30% in high-growth medium). Furthermore, the problem of CO(2) loss from the medium during medium preparation and storage was solved using both a theoretical and an experimental approach. RQ values in continuous culture were evaluated for two different growth media. Small but significant differences in RQ were measured, which were matched by differences in specific antibody rates and other metabolic quotients. In a medium with Primatone RL, an enzymatic hydrolysate of animal cell tissue that causes a more than twofold increase in cell density, the RQ was found to be 1.05, whereas in medium without Primatone RL (but containing amino acids equivalent in composition and concentration to Primatone RL) the RQ was found to be 0.97. We suggest the RQ to be a useful parameter for estimating the physiological state of cells. Its determination could be a suitable tool for both the on-line control of animal cell cultivations and the understanding of cell metabolism. (c) 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Changing proportions of DNA components in Euglena gracilis

The ratios of satellite deoxyribonucleic acid components to chromosomal deoxyribonucleic acid in Euglena gracilis Z were measured by analytical density gradient ultracentrifugation. Chloroplast deoxyribonucleic acid with a buoyant density of 1.685 g/cm³ exhibited a constant ratio to chromosomal deoxyribonucleic acid during exponential growth and increased twofold as the culture reached the end of the exponential growth phase. The quantity of a satellite deoxyribonucleic acid with a buoyant density of 1.691 g/cm³ was not sufficient to measure the ratio to chromosomal deoxyribonucleic acid during exponential growth but increased to approximately equal the quantity of chloroplast deoxyribonucleic acid as the culture approached the end of the exponential growth phase. The quantity of a deoxyribonucleic acid component with a buoyant density of 1.700 g/cm³ was not sufficient to measure the ratio to chromosomal deoxyribonucleic acid during exponential growth but represented approximately one-third of the total deoxyribonucleic acid as the culture entered the stationary phase of growth.     

Erythropoietin production in long-term cultures of human renal carcinoma cells : The role of cell population density

The present studies report the maintenance of erythropoietin (Ep) production in long-term cultures of a human renal carcinoma from a patient with erythrocytosis. The renal carcinoma cells were grown and maintained in monolayer cultures for 7 months. They were serially passaged every 2-3 weeks when the cultured cells reached confluency. Ep levels measured with a sensitive radioimmunoassay in the spent culture media of the cells in the stage of semiconfluent or confluent density were less than 20 and 30 mU/ml, respectively, throughout the period of 15 successive passages. However, when the renal carcinoma cells were maintained in culture without passage after reaching confluency, Ep levels in the spent media of these cells reproducibly showed an exponential increase to more than 300 mU/ml at the time of saturation density. The importance of cell population density in Ep production by the renal carcinoma cell cultures was further confirmed by the observation that the cultures with higher seeding density reached confluency earlier and began an exponential increase in Ep production sooner than those cultures with lower seeding density.     

Effect of plant growth regulators on the cellular growth and levels of intracellular protein,starch and polyamines in embryogenic suspension cultures of Pinus taeda

Somatic embryogenesis is the most important in vitro culture system for conifer propagation. However, Pinus taeda has been considered recalcitrant to somatic embryogenesis in commercial scale-up. The study of biochemical and physiological aspects of cell growth could lead to a better understanding of somatic embryogenesis in this species. In the present work, we investigated the cell growth dynamics, intracellular levels of proteins, starch and polyamines in suspension cultures of Pinus taeda established in plant growth regulator-free medium (BM0) and in medium supplemented with 2 M 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, 0.5 M 6-benzylaminopurine and 0.5 M Kinetin (BM2). Cell cultures growing in BM0 medium showed an increase in the sedimented cell volume from 3.77 to 17.73 ml after 24 days of culture. Those cultured in BM2 medium showed an increase in the sedimented cell volume from 4.23 to 25.17 ml after 20 days of culture. Intracellular proteins levels increased during the exponential growth phase and starch levels decreased until the exponential phase, followed by a synthesis up to the stationary phase, in both BM0 and BM2 media. Highest putrescine levels occurred in cultures growing in BM0 medium and this was associated with the low cellular growth.