title: Functional cells cultured on microcarriers for use in regenerative medicine research.
abstract: Microcarriers have been successfully used for many years for growing anchorage-dependent cells and as a means of delivering cells for tissue repair. When cultured on microcarriers, the number of anchorage-dependent cells, including primary cells, can easily be scaled up and controlled to generate the quantities of cells necessary for therapeutic applications. Recently, stem cell technology has been recognized as a powerful tool in regenerative medicine, but adequate numbers of stem cells that retain their differentiation potential are still difficult to obtain. For anchorage-dependent stem cells, however, microcarrier-based suspension culture using various types of microcarriers has proven to be a good alternative for effective ex vivo expansion. In this article, we review studies reporting the expansion, differentiation, or transplantation of functional anchorage-dependent cells that were expanded with the microcarrier culture system. Thus, the implementation of technological advances in biodegradable microcarriers, the bead-to-bead transfer process, and appropriate stem cell media may soon foster the ability to produce the numbers of stem cells necessary for cell-based therapies and/or tissue engineering.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Science and Technology, National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, Taiwan, ROC.
authors.forename: Li-Yi
authors.initials: LY
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Shinn-Zong
authors.initials: SZ
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Yuan-Sheng
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Horng-Jyh
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Harn
authors.forename: Tzyy-Wen
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Chiou
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D019902:Chondrocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000637:transplantation; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000637:transplantation; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000637:transplantation; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000637:transplantation; D006801:Humans; D015603:Keratinocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000637:transplantation; D044968:Regenerative Medicine; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*