Your cell cultures are precious, and you want them to have the best growing conditions. So, when it's time to choose a cell culture method, should you go with an adherent or a cell suspension platform?
It depends.
Cell culture vessel choice is influenced by a myriad of operational and biological factors, such as scale, resources, timing, cell type, and how much — or how little — culture inspection and parameter control is required. Adherent cell platforms, such as flasks, are an entry point for many anchorage-dependent cell types, but they don't always support scale. Cell suspension platforms offer scalability, but adapting cells to suspension can be far more complex.
"It's not to say that one is particularly better than the other," says Hannah Gitschier, a Development Manager at Corning Life Sciences. "You have to consider what your goal is, as well as the constraints of your lab and cleanroom space, budget for capital equipment, and anticipated timelines to go from research to clinical trials, and production scale."
Cell suspension and adherent cells surfaces each have pros and cons — and there are opportunities to get the best of both worlds. Here's what you should consider when choosing between cell suspension and adherent cell surfaces.