Tuesday, July 28, 2009 - 4:00 PM
S82

Plant Derived Components as Alternatives to Animal Derived Components in Cell Culture Media for Biopharmaceutical Production

Roshni L. Dutton, BioProcess Assist (bpa) Ltd, 8579 Appleby Line, Campbellville, ON L0P 1B0, Canada

Concern over the potential presence of adventitious contaminants such as viruses and prions in the medium utilized for the production of biopharmaceuticals has resulted in increasing emphasis on animal derived component free (ADCF) medium development; with a preference for plant derived components. Various plant derived materials have been successfully employed for the cultivation of mammalian cells - including: protein hydrolysates; lipids/sterols/fatty acids; growth and attachment factors; amino acids; surfactants; and dissociating agents - with growth and productivity at least comparable to that achieved using serum-containing media. There is evidence that some factors derived from plants suppress apoptosis. However, some preparations have been found to be cytotoxic, and serum-free media formulations can be more vulnerable to shear forces and to onset of apoptosis. Most plant-derived components commercially available have not been specifically developed for use in biopharmaceutical processes and may be derived from plants that have been exposed to pesticides and herbicides, or may have come in contact with animal-derived components during processing, potentially harboring harmful adventitious agents. As with serum, plant hydrolysates may not be universally beneficial in all cell culture systems, and lot-to-lot variability can be significant. Moreover, plant-derived components may impact fidelity of the expressed (protein) product, and may complicate upstream and downstream processes. Rigorous characterization of the plant-derived components and of the resultant (protein) product is indicated. While plant-derived components hold great promise, evaluation at the genetic, epigenetic and metabolic level is necessary to fully appreciate the impact on the cell culture system utilizing plant-derived components.