title: Alternatives to the use of fetal bovine serum: human platelet lysates as a serum substitute in cell culture media.
abstract: The search for alternatives to the use of fetal bovine serum (FBS) in cell and tissue culture media has become a major goal in terms of the 3R principles in order to reduce or to avoid harvesting of FBS from bovine fetuses, and, in terms of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), to ensure safe and animal product-free conditions for biomedical tissue engineering and (adult) stem cell therapy, respectively. In the present study, we investigated the feasibility of using platelet lysates (PL) as a substitute for FBS, based on the fact that most of the potent mitogenic factors present in serum are derived from activated thrombocytes. Platelet lysates were obtained from outdated human donor platelet concentrates. Methods were established to activate human donor platelets in order to achieve a maximum yield of platelet a-granule growth factors. Platelet lysates were successfully introduced to grow and maintain anchorage-dependent and -independent human and animal cell lines. For cell culture experiments, cells were either grown in culture media supplemented with 10% FBS, 5% PL, or under serum-free conditions. Growth experiments, viability assays, and platelet lysate-induced activation of ERK1/2 mitogen-activated protein kinase revealed platelet lysates as a valuable alternative to FBS in cell culture media.
authors: Division of Physiology, Innsbruck Medical University, Austria.
authors: Caroline
authors: C
authors: Rauch
authors: Elisabeth
authors: E
authors: Feifel
authors: Eva-Maria
authors: EM
authors: Amann
authors: Hans Peter
authors: HP
authors: Spötl
authors: Harald
authors: H
authors: Schennach
authors: Walter
authors: W
authors: Pfaller
authors: Gerhard
authors: G
authors: Gstraunthaler
mesh_terms: D023401:Animal Use Alternatives; D000818:Animals; D001792:Blood Platelets / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002417:Cattle; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods; D002460:Cell Line; D003470:Culture Media / Q000737:chemistry*; D005312:Fetal Blood; D005615:Freezing; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D003470:Culture Media