Rotating bio-reactor cell culture apparatus
AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
InventorsRay P. Schwarz, David A. Wolf
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A bio-reactor system wherein a tubular housing contains an internal circularly disposed set of blade members and a central tubular filter all mounted for rotation about a common horizontal axis and each having independent rotational support and rotational drive mechanisms. The housing, blade members and filter preferably are driven at a constant slow speed for placing a fluid culture medium with discrete microbeads and cell cultures in a discrete spatial suspension in the housing. Replacement fluid medium is symmetrically input and fluid medium is symmetrically output from the housing where the input and the output are apart of a loop providing a constant or intermittent flow of fluid medium in a closed loop.
Claims16
A bio-reactor system including
- an outer first tubular member having closed ends for defining an enclosed cell culture vessel, said tubular member having a horizontally extending, longitude, central axis;
- first means for rotating said first tubular member about said central axis;
- a central second tubular member mounted within said first tubular member for rotation about said central axis, said second tubular member and said first tubular member defining an annular cell culture chamber;
- second means for rotating said second tubular member about said central axis;
- an intermediate blade means mounted in said annular cell culture chamber for rotation about said central axis;
- third means for rotating said blade means about said central axis;
- where said first, second and third means for rotating are capable of providing independent rotation with respect to one another;
- and
- first passage means for connecting an input fluid to said cell culture chamber and second passage means for connecting said cell culture chamber and said second tubular member for output of fluid from said cell culture chamber whereby fluid can be passed through said cell culture chamber while said tubular members and blade means are being rotated.
A bio-reactor system including a coaxially disposed elongated central tubular member, and tubular housing which define an elongated annular cell culture vessel;
- means for rotating said central tubular member and said tubular housing independently of one another about a common horizontally extending, longitude central, rotational axis and for simultaneously rotating a fluid medium and discrete suspension materials with a different density in the culture vessel and for placing such suspension materials in discrete spatial locations out of interference with one another in the culture vessel,
- means for inputting fresh nutrient fluid medium to the culture vessel and filter means for outputting spent fluid medium from the culture vessel through the central rotating tubular member while maintaining zero volume headspace in the culture vessel and while rotating said central tubular member and said tubular housing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.