Yeast hydrolysate as a low-cost additive to serum-free medium for the production of human thrombopoietin in suspension cultures of Chinese hamster ovary cells

To enhance the performance of a serum-free medium (SFM) for human thrombopoietin (hTPO) production in suspension cultures of recombinant Chinese hamster ovary (rCHO) cells, several low-cost hydrolysates such as yeast hydrolysate (YH), soy hydrolysate, wheat gluten hydrolysate and rice hydrolysate were tested as medium additives. Among various hydrolysates tested, the positive effect of YH on hTPO production was most significant. When 5 g/L YH was added to SFM, the maximum hTPO concentration in batch culture was 40.41 ${\mu}g/mL$, which is 11.5 times higher than that in SFM without YH supplementation. This enhanced hTPO production in YH-supplemented SFM was obtained by the combined effect of enhanced $q_{hTPO}$ and increased culture longevity. In addition YH supplementation did not affect in vivo biological activity of hTPO. Taken together, the results obtained demonstrate the potential of YH as a medium additive for hTPO production in serum-free suspension cultures of rCHO cells.