Co-culturing cells
2019-2021
Dr. Hanga is co-culturing cells to advance the production of cultivated beef towards commercialization.
PRODUCTION PLATFORM: Cultivated
TECHNOLOGY SECTOR: Bioprocess design
Project aims
This project uses small bioreactors to produce high-density stem cell cultures in suspension. It develops parallel one-step bioprocesses for culturing different types of cells – both adipocyte and myocyte lineages. By employing hydrogels for cell encapsulation to co-culture differentiated cells, the research seeks to produce complex microtissues in small bioreactors.
This work paves the way for pilot-scale bioreactors that produce complex cultivated meat products. It also identifies topics to be addressed in bioreactor scaleup through a cost analysis.
Principal researcher
Dr. Mariana Petronela Hanga
Lecturer in Biological Engineering, Aston University, UK
Dr. Hanga researches stem cell bioprocessing, human mesenchymal and induced pluripotent stem cells, bioreactor scaleup, and cultivated meat. She produces stem cells and microcarriers for easier cell collection after culturing – specifically, nonenzymatic cell harvesting through either temperature control or microcarrier disassembly.
Bioprocess development for scalable production of cultivated meat
Check out Dr. Hanga’s peer-reviewed paper for more detailed information about this project.
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Designing cost-effective bioreactors
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Computational modeling
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Explore research opportunities
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Developing scalable, fit-for-purpose bioreactor and bioprocessing technologies for cultivated meat
Optimizing bioreactor and bioprocessing technologies for the needs of the cultivated meat industry has the potential to substantially reduce the cost of cultivated meat production. Innovations in cultivated meat bioprocessing…
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Scaffolds and structural approaches to optimize fat distribution and content in cultivated meat
The inclusion of fat and marbling in cultivated meat is likely to increase its flavor, texture, and consumer appeal. Structural approaches using edible microcarriers, hydrogels, and 3D bioprinting present promising…
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Cost-effective sterility controls for cultivated meat
Meticulous attention to sterility controls throughout cultivated meat production is essential to optimize food safety, but the cost of biopharmaceutical-based sterility—the current standard for cell-based processes—is incongruent with large-scale food…
Check out related resources
This professor is figuring out how to produce, scale, and combine muscle and fat for cell-based meat
Dr. Petra Hanga is working to optimize cell-based meat production by creating a robust and reliable scale-up process for fat and muscle cells.
