More for less: Improving the biomass yield of a pear cell suspension culture by design of experiments

Plant cell suspension cultures are widely used for the production of recombinant proteins and secondary metabolites. One of the most important steps during process development is the optimization of yields by testing different cultivation parameters, including the components of the growth medium. However, we have shown that the biomass yield of a cell suspension culture derived from the pear cultivar Pyrus communis cv. Champagner Bratbirne can be significantly improved solely by varying the temperature, inoculum density, illumination, and incubation time. In contrast to medium optimization, these simple physical factors are easily controlled and varied, thereby reducing the effort required. Using an experimental design approach, we improved the biomass yield from 146 g fresh weight (FW)/L to 407 g FW/L in only 5 weeks, simultaneously reducing the costs of goods sold per kg biomass from €125 to €45. Our simple approach therefore offers a rapid, efficient and economical process for the optimization of plant cell suspension cultures.