The role of media development in process optimization: An historical perspective - The development of culture media continues to improve biopharmaceutical manufacturing processes

Culture media development continues to be an area that offers the potential to dramatically improve the productivity of biopharmaceutical manufacturing processes. Having a well-defined media formulation optimized for maximum protein production can significantly improve product titers, thereby reducing costs and improving efficiency. In this article, we discuss the historical aspects of media development from the initial dominance of serum as a supplement in cell-culture media to the current trend toward serum-free, chemically defined, protein-free media customized for particular cell lines. We will also examine the advantages of developing a robust serum-free cell-culture medium containing defined animal-free protein supplements.