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News and Announcements
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Coating Mix Dramatically Boosts Volume and Speed
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April 29, 2002?Athena Environmental Sciences, Inc. (AthenaES™) today announced
that it will begin marketing a coating mix for flasks and other lab surfaces
that can increase the survival rate of cell lines from 5% to 95% during the
cell growth transfer process.
AthenaES? acquired the FNC COATING MIX™ in its acquisition of the cell
culture products division of Biological Research Faculty & Facility, Inc., (BRFF),
Ijamsville, MD. The coating mix has had limited distribution to a few university
labs and commercial manufacturers, but with this change in ownership, will be made
widely available to university labs, pharmaceutical labs and commercial manufacturers
in the United States and overseas.
Lab researchers typically use small flasks or glass plates to grow cell
lines, then transfer them two times to larger surfaces as the cells proliferate.
Traditionally only 5% of the cell lines survive each time they are transferred.
The FNC COATING MIX™ coats the flasks and plates with a polymer that helps the
cells attach faster, averting the high rate of cell death. Most cell types such
as human prostate, breast and epithelial (skin) cells will attach and grow well
on FNC-coated surfaces.
"This is truly a diamond in the rough," said Sheldon E. Broedel, Jr.,
Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer and Scientist at AthenaES™. "It is exciting to
identify a seemingly minor and obscure element in the lab research process that
can increase the volume and speed of cell production so dramatically. I expect
this to become the new industry standard."
AthenaES™ specializes in developing and manufacturing biotechnology
products. The privately-owned company produces a line of biotechnology ingredients
used in the manufacture of proteins, cell lines and other biological materials.
Its services include identification, design, development and manufacture of specialty
enzymes for research, diagnostic and industrial applications and custom contract
services for the production of recombinant proteins. AthenaES™ recently released
four new media formulations that can dramatically improve the production of recombinant
proteins in the bacterium E. coli or produce recombinant proteins where standard
formulations have failed. E.coli is the workhorse for the production of recombinant
proteins and the first choice of researchers who need to make large quantities of
pure protein.
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