Suspension culture on microcarriers and as aggregates enables expansion and differentiation of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs)
This publication compares microcarrier-based and aggregate-based expansion of human pluripotent stem cells in single-use Vertical-Wheel® Bioreactors. Human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells were evaluated for growth, viability, pluripotency, and differentiation potential under both suspension-culture formats. By day 6, microcarrier cultures achieved 22-fold expansion and approximately 2.2 × 10? cells/mL, while aggregate cultures achieved 18-fold expansion and approximately 1.8 × 10? cells/mL. Both approaches maintained high viability, stable pluripotency-marker expression, and differentiation capacity toward the three germ layers, neural progenitors, and cardiomyocytes. The study supports both microcarrier and aggregate processes as scalable PSC manufacturing strategies using Vertical-Wheel® Technology.
This application note demonstrates the benefits of PBS Biotech’s PBS-Mini Vertical-Wheel® Bioreactor within a scalable workflow developed with Bio-Techne for hiPSC expansion and differentiation into functional pancreatic islet-like clusters. The bioreactor supported robust aggregate culture while maintaining more than 95% pluripotency during hiPSC expansion and supporting progression through key stages of pancreatic differentiation. Combined with Bio-Techne’s GMP-grade reagents and analytical solutions, the workflow generated beta cell-containing, functional islet-like clusters that…
This webinar examines scalable suspension culture of PSC-derived organoids using PBS Biotech Vertical-Wheel bioreactors. PBS Applications Engineer, Hannah Worden, explains how low-shear, homogeneous mixing and consistent geometry support organoid process development and scale-up. Case studies cover liver, pancreatic islet, and cerebellar organoids, including aggregate-size control, differentiation, functional markers, and improved organization under dynamic culture. With the audience, we address agitation, seeding density, media formulation, perfusion-based medium exchange, sampling, and…
This poster, presented at ISSCR Kyoto 2026, demonstrates a scalable strategy for iPSC manufacturing using Vertical-Wheel Bioreactors, addressing expansion, process development, cell banking, and differentiation. Linear scale-up from PBS-0.1 through PBS-80 produced 200 billion iPSCs at a 50 L working volume while maintaining pluripotency and normal karyotype. High-density work cell banks were developed through 3D adaptation and retained differentiation potential toward cardiomyocytes and pancreatic progenitors. MiniPRO further served as a controlled scale-down model, demonstrating growth…
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