PEPTIDES & PROTEINS
Growth factor alternative peptide
Receptor
Cell
Figure 2 - How PeptiGrowth peptides work as alternatives for growth factors
Conventional growth factors
• Unstable
• Lot-to-lot variation
• Not animal-free
• Low sea la bility
• Expensive
Figure 3 - Comparison of PeptiGrowth peptides with conventional growth factors
however . Raw materials can be grown for a host of other applications , such as leather for the fashion industry and corneas for eye surgery .
Given the finite land and water resources available on the planet , feeding the world will be one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century . UN scientists state that animal agriculture is one of the major causes of the most pressing environmental problems , including land degradation ,
Growth factor alternative peptides
· Stable · Consistent quality
• Animal-free · High sea la bility
• Reasonable price
loss of biodiversity , global warming , and air and water pollution .
Cellular agriculture provides a significant solution to these challenges as its widespread use would conserve land and water , preserve habitat , reduce greenhouse gas emissions , and prevent manure pollution and antibiotic overuse . Lab-grown meat is also a potential solution to food insecurity in impoverished countries , as it takes much less time to grow , and uses fewer of the planet ’ s resources , while no animals need to be farmed or slaughtered .
Replacing bovine serum
In cell culture , the medium in which the cells and its supplements are grown play an important role . Notably , the major supplement of basal media is animal-derived serum , usually foetal bovine serum ( FBS ), which is the gold standard for cellular proliferation .
FBS serves as a source for hormones , growth factors , amino acids , proteins , and vitamins , inorganic salts , trace elements , carbohydrates , lipids , etc . for cellular metabolisms and growth of cells . Because of the complexity of cell and tissue types it is a challenge to grow cells without FBS .
However , FBS can also be contaminated with prion proteins , endotoxins , microbes , immunoglobulin and viruses . The worldwide number of bovine foetuses used and killed only for collecting FBS is increasing and foetal distress during blood collection to prepare FBS angers animal welfare and ethical associations .
All these challenges have led to increasing demand , high price , batchto-batch variability in quality and composition and increasing ethical concerns , resulting in a drive to find an alternative to FBS . Researchers have now found a serum-free media solution that replaces FBS with recombinant protein growth factors - molecules capable of stimulating a variety of cellular processes , including cell proliferation , migration , differentiation and multi-cellular morphogenesis during development and tissue healing . Recombinant proteins are proteins encoded by recombinant DNA that has been cloned in an expression vector , often E . coli but also prokaryotic and / or eukaryotic cells . The cells containing the template are then cultured , so that they can transcribe and translate the protein of interest .
However , there are associated problems similar to those of FBS : inconsistent quality , poor stability , low yield and high cost . Add to this the potential contamination with
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