title: The performance of primary human renal cells in hollow fiber bioreactors for bioartificial kidneys.
abstract: Bioartificial kidneys (BAKs) containing human primary renal proximal tubule cells (HPTCs) have been applied in clinical trials. The results were encouraging, but also showed that more research is required. Animal cells or cell lines are not suitable for clinical applications, but have been mainly used in studies on BAK development as large numbers of such cells could be easily obtained. It is difficult to predict HPTC performance based on data obtained with other cell types. To enable more extensive studies on HPTCs, we have developed a bioreactor containing single hollow fiber membranes that requires relatively small amounts of cells. Special hollow fiber membranes with the skin layer on the outer surface and consisting of polyethersulfone/polyvinylpyrrolidone were developed. The results suggested that such hollow fiber membranes were more suitable for the bioreactor unit of BAKs than membranes with an inner skin layer. An HPTC-compatible double coating was applied to the insides of the hollow fiber membranes, which sustained the formation of functional epithelia under bioreactor conditions. Nevertheless, the state of differentiation of the primary human cells remained a critical issue and should be further addressed. The bioreactor system described here will facilitate further studies on the relevant human cell type.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The Nanos, Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Zay Yar
authors.initials: ZY
authors.lastname: Oo
authors.forename: Rensheng
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ni
authors.forename: Karthikeyan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kandasamy
authors.forename: Mohammed Shahrudin
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: bin Ibrahim
authors.forename: Jackie Y
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Ying
authors.forename: Daniele
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zink
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry; D019149:Bioreactors; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D007668:Kidney / Q000166:cytology*; D007688:Kidneys, Artificial; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D051379:Mice; D041681:NIH 3T3 Cells
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D008567:Membranes, Artificial