Mineral hollow fiber bioreactor for the cultivation of animal cells

Bioreactor for animal cell culturing comprising:

• a cellular culture chamber (65), formed by a sleeve (64) and facing walls (78, 80) of two enclosures, respectively, an intake enclosure (60) and a discharge enclosure (62), said chamber containing the cells and a culture medium containing proteins;
• each enclosure being provided with an internal partition (74, 76) subdividing said each enclosure into a first (60a, 62a) and a second (60b, 62b) respectively internal and external chambers;
• at least one first porous mineral tube (66) connecting the external chamber (60b) of the intake enclosure (60) to the internal chamber (62a) of the discharge enclosure (62) and traversing said culture chamber (65) for supplying nutrient medium (19) to the culture medium (9), said first porous mineral tube (66) having on its inner face a first microporous filtering membrane (70) which prevents the passage of macromolecules of the nutrient medium (19) having a high molecular weight, and on its outer face a second microfiltering membrane (72) permitting the passage of low molecular weight molecules and serving as a barrier for the cells and the proteins present in the cellular culture chamber;
• at least one second porous mineral tube (68) connecting the internal chamber (60a) of the intake enclosure (60) to the external chamber (62b) of the discharge enclosure (62), while traversing the cellular culture chamber (65), said second porous mineral tube having a porosity which permits the passage of low molecular weight metabolites from the cellular culture chamber into said second tube (68) having on its outer and inner faces, respectively, said first and second membranes (70, 72);
• a connecting pipe (82) between the two internal chambers (60a, 62a) of the intake and discharge enclosures, having valve means to produce a pressure drop between said two internal chambers for a better material transfer through the first (66) and second (68) porous mineral tubes and which produces a flow in the same direction of the nutrient medium through said first and second porous mineral tubes, for improving the homogeneity of the cell medium in the bioreactor.