A new study shows how 3D printing can advance biotechnology: With the help of additive manufacturing, researchers developed a prototype bioreactor for cell cultivation to facilitate process optimization.
The 90 milliliter reactor frame was manufactured entirely using 3D printing. According to the scientists, this enables completely new degrees of freedom in the design – such as integrated sensors for monitoring the pH value, oxygen content and biomass. The inline measurements provide reliable data on all growth phases of the cell cultures.
A special feature is the floating magnetic stirrer, which does not require a rotating shaft. This reduces the risk of contamination and makes the reactor suitable for particularly sensitive cells. Migration tests have also shown that no growth-inhibiting substances are transferred from the reactor plastic to the culture medium.
Details of the work can be found in the paper “3D Printed, Single-Use Bioreactor with Integrated Inline Sensors for Microbial and Mammalian Cell Cultivation-A Case Study“.
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