Controlling fluid flow to improve cell seeding uniformity.

Standard methods for seeding monolayer cell cultures in a multiwell plate or dish do not uniformly distribute cells on the surface. With traditional methods, users find aggregation around the circumference, in the centre, or a combination of the two. This variation is introduced due to the macro scale flow of the cell seeding suspension, and movement of the dish before cells can settle and attach to the surface.

Collagen Type I Improves the Differentiation of Human Embryonic Stem Cells towards Definitive Endoderm.

Human embryonic stem cells have the ability to generate all cell types in the body and can potentially provide an unlimited source of cells for cell replacement therapy to treat degenerative diseases such as diabetes. Current differentiation protocols of human embryonic stem cells towards insulin producing beta cells focus on soluble molecules whereas the impact of cell-matrix interactions has been mainly unattended. In this study almost 500 different extracellular matrix protein combinations were screened to systemically identify extracellular matrix proteins that influence differentiation of human embryonic stem cells to the definitive endoderm lineage.