Cell culture medium

Cell culture medium is a liquid substance that provides a suitable environment for cell growth and proliferation.
It usually contains a variety of nutrients, such as amino acids, vitamins, carbohydrates, inorganic salts, etc., to meet the basic needs of cells. Cell culture medium also has the function of regulating cellular osmotic pressure, acidity and alkalinity, which helps to maintain the normal physiological state of cells.
Different types of cells may require different cell culture media to accommodate their specific growth characteristics.

Specific applications and characteristics of cell culture media are listed below:
Specific applications
Basic cell biology research: it provides an in vitro environment for the study of cell growth, differentiation, metabolism, signal transduction, aging, apoptosis and other basic life activities, and helps scientists gain a deeper understanding of the physiological characteristics and functional mechanisms of cells. For example, by culturing cells in media with different combinations of nutrients and growth factors, we can observe changes in cell morphology, proliferation rate, gene expression, etc., and reveal the response of cells to different environmental conditions.
Disease mechanism research: It can be used to culture diseased cells, such as tumor cells and cells related to neurodegenerative diseases, etc., in order to simulate the cellular behavior and pathological changes in the disease state, so as to investigate the mechanism of occurrence and development of the disease, and to provide a theoretical basis for the diagnosis, treatment, and drug development of the disease. For example, we utilize specific culture media to cultivate cancer cells, study their abnormal proliferation, invasion and metastasis mechanisms, and search for potential therapeutic targets.
Drug discovery and screening: In the process of drug discovery and development, cell culture media can be used to cultivate cell models for drug activity screening, toxicity testing, pharmacokinetic studies and so on. By observing the effects of drugs on cell growth, survival and function, the efficacy and safety of drugs can be evaluated to accelerate the R&D process of new drugs. For example, in the R&D of antibacterial drugs, we utilize bacterial cell culture medium to cultivate pathogenic bacteria, test the inhibitory effect of different drugs on their growth, and screen out compounds with potential antibacterial activity.
Biologics production: Widely used in the production of vaccines, antibodies, recombinant proteins, cytokines and other biologics. Through large-scale cultivation of specific cell lines to make them efficiently express and secrete the target biological products, and then carry out the separation and purification processes to obtain products with medicinal value. For example, by utilizing CHO cells cultured in specific medium, we can produce hepatitis B vaccine, human erythropoietin and other biologics.
Cell therapy: For cell therapy field, such as stem cell therapy, immune cell therapy, etc., cell culture medium is the key to culture and expand therapeutic cells. It maintains the stemness and functional activity of the cells and ensures that the cells are able to fulfill their therapeutic roles once they are returned to the body. For example, culturing MSCs is used to treat various diseases, such as osteoarthritis and myocardial infarction, etc. Culturing CAR-T cells is used for tumor immunotherapy.
Gene editing and cell engineering: In gene editing technologies such as CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene knockout and knock-in experiments, cell culture medium provides an environment for the growth and screening of gene-edited cells, which helps to obtain cell lines with specific gene modifications for the study of gene function and the construction of cell models. Meanwhile, in the field of cell engineering, such as cell fusion, transfection and other operations, the appropriate medium is also needed to support the survival and proliferation of cells.