Bi-axial bioreactor set to revolutionise pre-clinical trials in the field of regenerative medicine.

A research collaboration between the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Singapore Polytechnic (SP) has resulted in the development of the "world’s first" bi-axial bioreactor. This provides a controlled environment, with the optimal combination of nutrients and gases for growing cells. The bi-axial bioreactor is ideal for slowgrowing cells, such as bone cells, stem cells and primary cells. A start-up company, QuinXell Technologies, has exclusively licensed this technology from NUS and SP, and is marketing it under the name TisXell. QuinXell Technologies is currently focusing on the research market, targeting hospitals, research institutes and pharmaceutical/ biotech companies that are doing research in areas such as regenerative medicine, tissue engineering, translational medicine and tissue/ organ transplant.

The bi-axial bioreactor rotates simultaneously in two independent axes. This gyroscopic spinning movement leads to an improved flow of the fluids within the bioreactor, compared to other commercially-available, single-axial bioreactors. The bi-axial bioreactor can control every single axis of movement, and it is also flexible enough to adopt a single-axis movement, if required.

“We came up with the idea of a bi-axial rotation by trying to mimic the way that a foetus rotates within its mother’s womb, which inarguably is nature’s best bioreactor. We believe that this is the first bioreactor to be successful in growing bone tissue outside the body. In fact, using the bi-axial bioreactor, we were able to see white bone mineral deposits after just 4 weeks of the cells having been seeded onto the scaffold,” said Professor Teoh Swee Hin from the NUS Department of Mechanical Engineering, who led the research at NUS.