Trace Elements for Upstream Processing

One area of growing interest to achieve an efficient production of therapeutic proteins is trace elements in cell culture media and upstream processing since they may promote or inhibit cell growth and protein expression or affect the quality of the product desired on different levels.The latter reaches from changes in the glycosylation patterns to reactions during protein folding and unfolding, like oxidation. Consequently, improperly controlled trace metal levels affect upstream process yield.

Levels and, even more important, lot-to-lot consistency of trace elements are critical variables that may influence cell growth, thus all elemental impurities must be closely monitored for all incoming raw materials. The trace metals that most impact upstream processing are Iron, Zinc, Manganese, and Copper.