A Study on Scale-up Process for Microcarrier Cultue of MDCK Cells Using Low Serum Medium

Madin-Darby canine kidney(MDCK) cells have been widely used for influenza virus isolation and vaccine production since they are susceptible to infection with various influenza virus strains.To develop a low serum medium for MDCK cells,critical components that affect cell adhesion and favorable hydrolyzate were investigated and selected separately.Calcium and magnesium ions were found indispensable to cell adhesion,and serum could be partially replaced by wheat hydrolyzate in medium.MDCK cells were digested from microcarriers in 5 L bioreactor and then scaled up to 25 L bioreactor.The results showed that the low serum medium well supported the growth of MDCK cells with favorable cell distributions,and the viable cell density reached 30.5×105 cells/ml 48 h after inoculation in 25 L bioreactor.The work provided the necessary basis for large-scale production of avian influenza virus using microcarrier-based MDCK cell culture system.