Shear sensitivity of insect cells

While insect cells can be easily damaged in bioreactors as a result of hydrodynamic forces, it is also relatively easy to prevent this damage. Of several possible damage mechanisms, the best understood and preventable is the attachment of cells to gas-liquid interfaces and the subjection of these attached cells to the hydro-dynamic forces and/or physical forces associated with these interfaces. For example, cells attached to gas bubbles in a bioreactor can be transported into the foam layer where they are physically removed from the cell suspension, or they can be killed when the gas bubble they are attached to ruptures at the medium-air interface at the top of the bioreactor. The easiest method to prevent this damage is through the use of specific surface active compounds, such as Pluronic F-68 or Methocel E-50 which prevent the cells from attaching to the gas-medium interface.