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Frequently Asked Questions
About Defined Bioscience
Who is Defined Bioscience?
Who is Defined Bioscience?
Defined Bioscience is a life science tools company focused on creating chemically defined, animal-origin-free media, supplements, and reagents that enable breakthrough research and clinical translation. Founded by scientists and entrepreneurs with deep experience in stem cell biology, regenerative medicine, and biomanufacturing, Defined Bioscience supports academic researchers, biotechnology startups, and pharmaceutical companies worldwide.
What is our mission?
What is our mission?
Our mission is to empower scientists with reliable, reproducible, and cost-effective products that accelerate discoveries in stem cell research, cell and gene therapy, immuno-oncology, and cultivated meat. We believe that open-label, chemically defined formulations are the future of cell culture — helping labs move away from legacy, opaque, or animal-derived systems toward reproducibility and regulatory readiness.
Who are our products for?
Who are our products for?
We design our products for:
- Academic researchers seeking open-label formulations to publish reproducible science.
- Biotech and biopharma teams advancing cell therapies, regenerative medicine, and drug discovery.
- Core facilities and CROs that need consistent, standardized results across users and projects.
- Cultivated meat innovators who require species-specific, animal-origin-free formulations for scalable cell culture.
What areas of science and industry do we support?
What areas of science and industry do we support?
Our products are widely used in:
- Pluripotent stem cell (PSC) maintenance and expansion.
- Differentiation into neural, cardiac, and immune cell lineages.
- Development of cell-based therapies and regenerative medicine workflows.
- High-throughput drug screening and disease modeling.
- Cultivated meat research using species-specific growth factors.
What makes us different?
What makes us different?
- Open-label formulations: We disclose all ingredients, empowering scientists to know exactly what they are using.
- Animal-origin-free products: Many of our flagship offerings, including HiDef-B8, FGF2-G3, HiDef-ITS, and Ready-CEPT, are manufactured without animal-derived components.
- Proven performance: Our products reduce labor-intensive culture requirements (e.g., weekend-free feeding) and consistently maintain high-quality cell cultures.
- Commercial readiness: Defined Bioscience develops products under processes aligned with translational and cGMP needs, making them suitable for research and clinical development.
Where is Defined Bioscience located?
Where is Defined Bioscience located?
We are headquartered in San Diego, California, a global hub for biotechnology and cell therapy innovation. This location allows us to collaborate closely with academic institutions, biotech startups, and biopharma leaders.
Why choose Defined Bioscience?
Why choose Defined Bioscience?
By combining scientific expertise with operational experience, we deliver products that:
- Simplify workflows.
- Improve reproducibility.
- Reduce cost compared to legacy formulations.
- Support scale-up from research to clinical manufacturing.
Defined Bioscience’s Products
What are Defined Bioscience’s main product offerings?
What are Defined Bioscience’s main product offerings?
Defined Bioscience specializes in producing chemically defined, feeder-free media, supplements, and reagents for stem cell research, including human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), embryonic stem cells and other mammalian cells. These products are optimized for high reproducibility and consistent cell growth across various applications. In addition, our ingredients are ‘open label’, so you know what you are adding to your cells.
Are Defined Bioscience products animal-origin free?
Are Defined Bioscience products animal-origin free?
Many of our products, including the HiDef-B8 medium and supplements such as FGF2-G3 and HiDef-ITS, are fully animal-origin free. This ensures that they are suitable for both basic research and translational applications where the absence of animal-derived components is critical.
Usage of Defined Bioscience Media
Can I transition my cells from other feeder-free media to Defined Bioscience media?
Can I transition my cells from other feeder-free media to Defined Bioscience media?
Yes, stem cells cultured in other feeder-free media can be transitioned to Defined Bioscience’s HiDef-B8 medium or other formulations with minimal effects on morphology or growth rates. We recommend a gradual adaptation process for optimal results and we have an application note on how to do this.
Is the HiDef-B8 medium suitable for weekend-free maintenance?
Is the HiDef-B8 medium suitable for weekend-free maintenance?
Yes, HiDef-B8 medium is designed to support flexible feeding schedules, including weekend-free culture maintenance. This medium reduces the need for daily feeding and helps maintain cells in an undifferentiated state across multiple passages.
How should I thaw and prepare supplements like HiDef-B8 and FGF2-G3?
How should I thaw and prepare supplements like HiDef-B8 and FGF2-G3?
We recommend thawing all supplements, including HiDef-B8 and FGF2-G3, at room temperature or in a refrigerator overnight. Avoid rapid thawing in a 37°C water bath to maintain the integrity of the components. Do not re-freeze the materials.
Specific Product Questions
What are the advantages of FGF2-G3 compared to traditional FGF2?
What are the advantages of FGF2-G3 compared to traditional FGF2?
FGF2-G3 is a thermostable form of fibroblast growth factor 2 that remains active for up to 21 days at 37°C, reducing the need for frequent media changes. It helps maintain homogeneous stem cell cultures and supports efficient long-term growth.
How does Ready-CEPT improve stem cell viability?
How does Ready-CEPT improve stem cell viability?
Ready-CEPT is a specialized supplement that contains a combination of a ROCK inhibitor, caspase inhibitors, and polyamines. It improves stem cell viability during passaging, cryopreservation, and gene editing, outperforming other similar products like Y-27632.
Can I use HiDef-ITS to reduce the serum content in my cultures?
Can I use HiDef-ITS to reduce the serum content in my cultures?
Yes, HiDef-ITS is designed to support cell growth in reduced-serum conditions, allowing you to lower the FBS concentration in your cultures while maintaining cell viability and performance.
Passaging and Maintenance
Should I passage my cells as aggregates or as single cells?
Should I passage my cells as aggregates or as single cells?
We recommend passaging cells as aggregates for routine maintenance to minimize selective pressure on cell populations. However, if needed for specific applications, such as single-cell sorting or clonal expansion, you can passage cells as single cells with the help of supplements like Ready-CEPT to enhance single-cell viability.
How often should I passage my cells?
How often should I passage my cells?
Cells should typically be passaged every 3-5 days when they reach 70-80% confluency. For cells cultured in HiDef-B8, this can be extended to twice-weekly passages in a weekend-free schedule.
Troubleshooting
My supplement appears cloudy after thawing. Can I still use it?
My supplement appears cloudy after thawing. Can I still use it?
If cloudiness persists after thawing the supplement at room temperature, gently swirl the bottle and ensure that it is free of particulates before adding it to the medium. If cloudiness continues, contact technical support for further guidance.
What should I do if my cells exhibit spontaneous differentiation?
What should I do if my cells exhibit spontaneous differentiation?
Spontaneous differentiation may occasionally occur in PSC cultures. If this happens, it is recommended to monitor the cultures closely and remove differentiated areas during passaging to maintain the quality of your cultures.
Cryopreservation and Recovery
What is the best method to cryopreserve cells cultured in Defined Bioscience media?
What is the best method to cryopreserve cells cultured in Defined Bioscience media?
We recommend using cryopreservation reagents like Ready-CEPT in combination with our defined media to preserve cell viability. Cells should be cryopreserved when they are at 70-80% confluency for optimal recovery post-thaw.
Can I recover my cells directly into Defined Bioscience media after thawing?
Can I recover my cells directly into Defined Bioscience media after thawing?
Yes, cells can be recovered directly into Defined Bioscience media like HiDef-B8. For best results, we recommend supplementing with Ready-CEPT immediately after thawing to support cell viability.
Contact and Collaboration Opportunities
Defined Bioscience actively engages with the scientific community to support disease modeling research. We encourage researchers to reach out to our technical experts for collaboration opportunities, protocol optimization, and troubleshooting assistance.
By leveraging Defined Bioscience products, researchers can accelerate their disease modeling studies, enhance experimental reliability, and advance therapeutic discoveries.