iPSC Expansion, Characterization and Banking

Stem cell and iPSC lines take time and resources to establish. Furthermore, maintaining cells in active culture results in cycles of passaging and aging of the cells. Although presumably immortal in their renewal capacity, the stress of in vitro culture on cells is known to cause genetic alterations that eventually may impair the cell line’s capacity to “perform” as desried. For that reason, characterizing, expanding and banking your cells is a critical requirement to protect your valuable biological resource.

REPROCELL has developed and characterized over 100 iPSC lines from a variety of human clinical samples, including from both normal and diseased tissue. That experience ensures that you will receive the best quality cell line and full information disclosure about its features and expected performance. Our experts will also be available to you should there be any need for future advice.

REPROCELL has the experience and capacity to provide outstanding iPSC Expansion, Characterization and Banking services. You can trust our quality and accuracy.

Characterization Services

• Immunocytochemistry — utilizing our StainAlive™ brand and other Stemgent pluripotent antibody markers, we can broadly characterize your iPSC line for expression of key pluripotency markers such as Nanog, Oct4, SSEA-4 and others. Our labs have high resolution microscopy and imaging capabilities to provide you with convincing data and quality images.
• Karyotyping — Examination of the genetic integrity of both primary cell lines and derived iPSC lines is useful for verification of authenticity and normality. Various levels of genetic analysis can be performed including gross karyology, and even copy number variation (CNV) analysis. Furthermore, primary cell samples and vialed final products (custom iPSC clones) are also genetically checked using either HLA typing or Next Gen Sequencing on multiple markers to verify that your iPSC line is authentically derived from the original starting material, and no accidental mix-up has occurred.
• In vitro Directed Differentiation — Since 2006, REPROCELL has been offering commercially available differentiated cell types of mesoderm, ectoderm and endodermal origins. We have the expertise and experience to differentiate and evaluate an iPSC’s differentiation capacity for cardiomyocytes, hepatocytes and neuronal cells. We have done this on a great many cell lines, so we absolutely understand the difference between good, bad and all shades in-between.
• In vivo teratoma formation — REPROCELL does not actually have animal facilities (honest disclosure), but we can leverage our partners for preferred pricing and help you interpret your results. The convenience of using one supplier for all iPSC services helps you minimize paperwork, redundant conversations, and the hassles of shipping logistics, etc. Let us be your full service, one-stop partner for expert iPSC reprogramming and characterization services.

Cell Line Expansion and Cryopreservation Services

• Feeder dependent — The growth of iPSC on fibroblast feeder cell layers has gradually been transitioning toward feeder-free (FF) due to the greater convenience of FF cultures. But cell health on feeders, especially in REPROCELL’s Primate ES Cell Culture Medium is hard to rival. If your cells are currently feeder-dependent, or you simply want to expand and cryopreserve you cells exploiting the robustness of feeder-dependent cultures, we can accommodate your request.
• Feeder-free — REPROCELL labs use a variety of FF medium including ReproFF2, ReproXF, Nutristem, StemFit, and others. There are no limitations on what we can offer, but our reprogramming services are optimized for use of specific formulations for maximum performance. Some media, such as all those mentioned, are devoid of animal origin components (xeno-free) giving you an extra assurance of safety and regulatory compliance.
• GMP-compliant Service — For therapeutic use of human cells, strict adherence to regulatory guidelines and use of well-documented GMP-complaint cell processing facilities is a requirement. REPROCELL is internally developing these capabilities including GMP-compliant reprogramming procedures to offer the best possible iPSC for clinical applications. We expect to be able to bring you this service sometime in 2018 or 2019.
• Cryopreservation Medium — Classic cryopreservation medium contain additives such as dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), which has associated toxicity and is a potential mutagen. REPROCELL offers media options such as the use of ReproCryo RM, which is manufactured GMP-compliant and has a drug master file in Japan. Our experts can help pick what is right for you!