CELLnTEC – Precision Cell Culture Technologies for 3D Bioprinting and Regenerative Medicine

Company expertise

CELLnTEC is a Swiss company developing and manufacturing chemically defined cell culture media and advanced culture systems for human primary cells, stem or progenitor cells, and iPSC-derived cells.

Our expertise covers the isolation, expansion, differentiation, co-culture, and long-term maintenance of human cells, including epithelial, endothelial and mesenchymal cell populations. Our technologies support reproducible 2D and 3D culture systems, organotypic tissue models, and tissue engineering applications involving skin, corneal, bladder, lung, and liver tissues.

Alongside our serum-free and animal-/human-component-free media portfolio, we co-develop application-specific formulations and culture protocols with academic and industrial researchers. This includes media for multicellular systems and converting complex laboratory formulations into defined, reproducible and scalable processes, supported by manufacturing and quality-assurance expertise.

1. Human-cell culture and media optimisation for functional 3D-bioprinted tissues

The development of tissue-specific functional 3D bio-printing of living cells requires sufficient numbers of viable human cells with the appropriate phenotype and functionality, as well as established culture conditions that support their organisation into complex tissue structures. This is particularly relevant to produce bio-constructs with high cell-density, to achieve improved vascularisation, and to ensure the long-term stability and functionality of the created bio-constructs.

Depending on the target tissue and selected bioprinting technology, we can develop application-specific media formulations and optimise culture conditions across the bioprinting workflow, with potential contributions including:

• Cell expansion and preparation: Developing defined culture conditions to obtain sufficient numbers of viable and functional human cells while maintaining cell yield, phenotypic stability, and differentiation capacity for high-density bioprinting.

• Multicellular construct development: Optimising media for co-cultures, organoid-derived cell populations, and complex 3D constructs to support cellular interactions, tissue-specific differentiation, functional maturation, and long-term maintenance, including culture conditions relevant to endothelial cell function and vascularisation.

• Bioprinting workflow integration: Working with bioprinting and biomaterials partners to assess media compatibility with selected bioinks, printing processes and tissue constructs, including post-printing culture requirements.

Our expertise can support both in-vitro bioprinting followed by transplantation and in-situ approaches, with the specific contribution adapted to the biological requirements of the selected application.

Potential project outputs include optimised media formulations, standardised cell expansion and differentiation protocols, and experimentally characterised culture conditions supporting the viability, functionality, and maintenance of bioprinted human tissues.

2. Culture process scale-up and GMP-oriented clinical translation

CELLnTEC supports the scale-up of bioprinting technologies towards Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP)-compliant manufacturing processes by developing reproducible, scalable, and quality-controlled cell culture media and workflows. We combine expertise in cell biology, medium formulation development, and manufacturing to translate laboratory-developed culture conditions into defined and manufacturable processes while preserving the biological performance required for functional human-cell constructs.

• Formulation optimisation and scale-up: Simplifying laboratory-developed media, replacing undefined animal- or human-derived components where feasible, and adapting formulations for reproducible, larger-scale cell production.

• Process standardisation and quality control: Establishing defined raw-material specifications, standardised manufacturing and quality-control procedures, batch-to-batch consistency, traceability, and change-management processes to support reproducible biological inputs for bioprinting.

• Clinical translation and regulatory preparation: Drawing on our experience supporting clinical-stage cell therapy programmes, we contribute to culture-media qualification and provide the technical and quality documentation needed for GMP-regulated manufacturing and preparation for first-in-human studies.

Relevant consortium experience: NEOLIVER

CELLnTEC participates in NEOLIVER (Horizon Europe, GA 101191649), which develops dense, vascularised, and functional 3D-bioprinted liver constructs for future transplantation using patient-derived organoids and supporting cells. CELLnTEC is responsible for optimising culture-media formulations for multicellular spheroids and supporting their transfer towards GMP-ready manufacturing conditions.