This video is the first class in a series on growing and engineering human cells. The instructor, Josiah Zayner, covers the basics of human cell culture in a DIY setting, emphasizing the differences between culturing human cells and other organisms like bacteria and yeast. He highlights the importance of sterility and maintaining the cells' optimal temperature (37°C). The video includes a demonstration of basic cell handling and microscopy techniques.
Human cells are more delicate: Unlike bacteria or yeast, human cells require more careful handling and a stable environment. They are sensitive to temperature fluctuations and require specific media.
Sterility is crucial: The speaker emphasizes the importance of maintaining a clean work environment and using proper techniques to prevent contamination from bacteria, yeast, and other microorganisms. While antibiotics and antimycotics are used in the media, cleanliness is paramount.
Optimal temperature is 37°C: Human cells thrive at 37°C. The instructor discusses ways to maintain this temperature using various methods, including heat mats and incubators.
Microscopy techniques: The video demonstrates using an inverted microscope with the amScope software for observing cells. Improving contrast by using opaque tape over the light source is shown. The speaker explains how to identify healthy cells based on their shape and attachment to the flask surface.
Creating a backup culture: To prevent loss of cells in case of contamination, the instructor demonstrates a method of creating a backup culture by gently scraping cells from the original flask and transferring them to a new one. The normal method (using trypsin) will be covered in a subsequent class.
Josiah Zayner states that while many academic and commercial labs use CO2 incubators for cell culture because they use a bicarbonate buffer system that requires CO2 to maintain pH, CO2 is not actually necessary to grow cells. He explains that a normal buffer can maintain the required pH without CO2, and he himself has successfully grown various cell types without using a CO2 incubator. He finds it baffling that CO2 incubators remain standard practice despite this.
