Lab & analytical techniques · Reference
What is cell culture?
Cell culture is the laboratory practice of growing cells outside their original organism under controlled conditions, supplying the nutrients, temperature, and environment they need so researchers can study and manipulate them.
How cells are grown
In cell culture, living cells are maintained in a growth medium — a liquid supplying nutrients, salts, and often added serum or defined growth factors — held in flasks or dishes inside an incubator. The incubator controls temperature, humidity, and the carbon-dioxide level that keeps the medium at the right acidity. Sterility is essential, since bacteria or fungi would quickly overgrow the culture; work is therefore done in laminar-flow cabinets using sterile technique. Many cell types grow attached to a surface as a single layer, while others grow suspended in the medium; as they multiply and fill the space, they are subcultured (passaged) into fresh vessels.
Primary cells and cell lines
Primary cells are taken directly from tissue and closely resemble their source, but they divide only a limited number of times before they stop, so each preparation is finite.
Immortalised cell lines can divide indefinitely, having acquired changes that bypass the normal limit on division. They provide a consistent, renewable, and widely shared resource, though their long adaptation to the laboratory means they may differ from the original tissue. Authenticating cell-line identity is an important part of reproducible research.
Uses in research
Cell culture underpins much of modern biology, providing controlled systems to study how cells function, to test how they respond to compounds, and to produce proteins, antibodies, and vaccines. Cultured cells are the starting material for assays such as the ELISA and analyses like flow cytometry. Because results depend on cell identity and condition, reproducible work requires authenticated cell lines, contamination checks, and documented passage and culture conditions.
Key facts
At a glance
- Definition: growing cells outside the organism under control
- Environment: nutrient medium in a temperature/CO₂-controlled incubator
- Requirement: strict sterility (sterile technique, laminar-flow cabinet)
- Passaging: subculturing cells into fresh vessels as they grow
- Primary cells: taken from tissue; divide a limited number of times
- Cell lines: immortalised cells that divide indefinitely
Common questions
FAQ
What is the difference between primary cells and a cell line?+
Primary cells are isolated directly from tissue and divide only a limited number of times before stopping, while immortalised cell lines have acquired changes that let them divide indefinitely. Cell lines give a consistent, renewable resource but may differ from the original tissue.
Why must cell culture be kept sterile?+
Bacteria and fungi grow far faster than cultured cells and would quickly overgrow and ruin a culture. Work is therefore carried out with sterile technique in laminar-flow cabinets, and media and equipment are sterilised beforehand.
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