Glasgow's MEM (GMEM) was originally developed by Ian McPherson and Michael Stoker as a modification of Eagle's Minimal Essential Medium. It was used to study the genetic factors that affected cell competence. Glasgow's MEM was developed for use with kidney cell lines, such as BHK-21.


The complete formulation is available.

Using Glasgow's MEM
Glasgow's MEM is unique from other media as it contains twice the concentration of amino acids and vitamins compared to the original Basal Medium Eagle, and is used without serum. Glasgow's MEM was originally formulated with 10% tryptose phosphate broth. Glasgow's MEM contains no proteins, lipids, or growth factors. Therefore, Glasgow's MEM requires supplementation with 10% tryptose phosphate broth. Glasgow's MEM uses a sodium bicarbonate buffer system (2.75 g/L), and therefore requires a 5–10% CO₂ environment to maintain physiological pH.

Dual-site cGMP manufacturing
Glasgow's MEM is manufactured at a cGMP-compliant facility located in Grand Island, New York. The facility is registered with the FDA as a medical device manufacturer and is certified to ISO 13485 standards. For supply chain continuity, we offer an identical Glasgow's MEM product made in our Scotland facility (21710-025). This facility is registered with the FDA as a medical device manufacturer and is certified to the ISO 13485 standard.