What are the benefits and disadvantages of using heat-inactivated FBS in cell culture?
- Heating inactivates complement. Active complement can participate in cytolytic events, contract smooth muscle, release histamine from mast cells and platelets, and activate lymphocytic and macrophage cells. Applications where heat-inactivated serum is recommended include immunological studies and culturing of embryonic stem cells (ESCs), insect cells, and smooth muscle cells.
- Heat inactivation helps to achieve bottle-to-bottle and lot-to-lot stability by neutralizing many factors that can vary largely from lot to lot.
- There aren't necessarily disadvantages to heat inactivation of FBS, but there is some evidence that suggests there may be no added benefit to it unless you are carrying out immune studies.
Note: Heat inactivation is performed in a 56 degrees C water bath for 30 min with swirling every 10 min or so for heat distribution and to lower the degree of protein aggregation/flocculant precipitation. Note: If the time or temperature is exceeded, the serum may thicken to a gel. If this occurs, the serum is no longer usable. Unnecessary heat inactivation can take up time and potentially lead to wasted reagents if a mistake is made during the protocol1.
1. Pellerin, et al., Bioengineering, published in 2021.
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Do I have to heat-inactivate Fetal Bovine Serum, charcoal stripped, USDA-approved regions, One Shot format (Cat. No. 12676029 or A3382101)?
The material is not heat-inactivated. We would only recommend heat-inactivating it if your application specifically requires it. We recommend using heat-inactivated serum when working with immune type cells or for immunological applications.
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Are there any other packaging configurations available for the new One Shot FBS product?
Yes, we also offer a 10 X 50 mL package, which is equivalent to a 500 mL bottle of FBS.
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How is the new One Shot FBS bottle different from our existing One Shot bottle?
Our previous One Shot bottle, a 60 mL Nalgene media bottle, is not designed for easy pipetting and pouring whereas the new One Shot FBS bottle has a propietary design that was developed specifically for FBS use. This design allows you to freeze, thaw and pour without the need to aliquot, which minimizes the amount of FBS handling and reduces the risk of contamination.
Find additional tips, troubleshooting help, and resources within our Cell Culture Support Center.
