Upstream Bioprocessing | Thermo Fisher Scientific

Upstream bioprocessing is the first phase of the bioprocess from cell line development and cultivation to culture expansion of the cells through harvest.

Upstream bioprocessing has made great productivity gains over the last decade. Modern cell culture systems are now producing notably higher titers while also decreasing the time from bench to production bioreactor.

Thermo Fisher Scientific helped pioneer significant technological advances that have driven these performance gains, including producing better expression systems, cell culture media optimization, development of single-use technologies and integrated process automation.

Cell culture development	Scale-up and production	Harvest and collection	More upstream solutions
Cell line development	Cell culture for bioprocessing	Harvest and separation products	Contaminant and impurity testing
Cell culture media and feeds	Single-Use equipment and automation	Centrifuges for bioprocessing	Measurement and control solutions
Gibco BioProduction services	BioProcess Containers (BPCs)	Storage and transport	Automation and data management
Lab-scale bioreactors	Liquid products for bioprocessing	Rigid containment
Production Chemical and Sourcing Services	Direct Material Supply Chain Services	Production Chemical and Sourcing Services
	Production Chemical Custom Packaging Services	Production Chemical Custom Packaging Services

Achieve optimal outcomes in your upstream bioprocess:

Leverage our upstream services, catalog products and protein analytics to develop the media and feeds that drive optimal titers without compromising on product quality.

Custom upstream services: Tailor services ranging from catalog evaluation to complete process development to meet your unique production requirements, including your desired level of confidentiality and IP protection.	View our full-service offering, including: Cell line development Media development Analytical services Custom media production Formulation and process development
Proven Gibco cell culture catalog products: Entrust your cell culture needs to our comprehensive portfolio of high-performance products, manufactured in cGMP compliant facilities that are harmonized for redundant operation to ensure supply.	View Gibco bioprocessing cell culture offering: Cell line development CHO media for protein expression Feeds and supplements Viral vaccine production Serum
Improve protein quality: Shift the glycan expression to your desired profile and confirm with the only high throughput and high data quality glycan analysis platform.	Gibco GlycanTune Total Feeds

Explore solutions that can improve your process efficiency by matching the right cell culture media and supplement formats with single-use mixing and liquid handling technologies tailored to your process.

Production Chemical Custom Packaging Services: Simplify your process liquid and buffer manufacturing with fit-for-purpose solutions—ready-to-hydrate dry powder and ready-to-use liquid chemicals—to improve productivity, reduce total cost of ownership, and mitigate risks. View possibilities for fit-for-purpose solutions that meet your unique workflow specifications: Open architecture Manufacturing network flexibility Expertise and experience
Cell culture media formats: Address your particular bioprocessing application with cutting-edge Advanced Granulation Technology (AGT) to large-scale bioprocessing liquids. Select your optimal format, size, and packaging to meet your needs.	View media formats and made-to-order packaging solutions: Advanced Granulation Technology (AGT) Liquid media, feeds, and supplements Dry powder media (DPM)
Single-use mixing (S.U.M) platforms: Leverage our S.U.M. systems for all the productivity benefits of single-use technology, suited to the needs of media and bioprocess liquid preparation.	View options for top-down, stirred-tank or bottom-driven impulse mixing based on your application needs: HyPerforma Single-Use Mixer (S.U.M.) imPULSE Single-Use Mixer (S.U.M.) Docking mixing systems
Flexible single-use containment and transfer assemblies: Minimize time and labor intensive steps and streamline your process with ready-to-use BioProcess Containers (BPCs) and transfer assemblies for critical liquid handling applications.	View options to optimize your critical liquid handling steps, including: Standard BioProcess Containers (BPCs) Custom BioProcess Containers (BPCs) Fluid Transfer Solutions

Combine our configurable control systems with production-scale single-use bioreactors to intensify the process of getting into production.

Additionally, our portfolio offers one of the broadest selections of cGMP production chemicals—across nearly every chemical class and category—enabling expedited scale-up and scale-out.

Production Chemicals and Services: Streamline operations with a comprehensive portfolio of proven solutions designed to improve productivity, reduce total cost of ownership, and mitigate risks with the support of our Lean experts. View options to simplify your workflows: Production Chemicals and Sourcing Services Production Chemical Custom Packaging Services Direct Material Supply Chain Services
Measurement and controls solutions: Assess and manage critical process parameters, like temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen, to optimize performance at difference scales and ensure smooth scale-up and reliable performance.	View comprehensive measurement and control solutions: Single-use sensors and transmitters Bioreactor controllers and software
Benchtop bioreactors: Utilizerockers and stirred-tank vessels for labscale or cGMP applications, ideal for both personalized workstation and seed train production applications.	Stirred-tank glass bioreactors Rocker bioreactors”
Production-scale bioreactors with 5:1 turndown ratio: Streamline bioprocesses by maximizing process vessel usage and reducing cell transfers and associated adaptation.	View our family of open architecture and integrated single-use bioreactors.

Ensure the quality and safety of your pharmaceutical products by detecting impurities and identifying contaminants with rapid molecular techniques that are quickly becoming the standards for pharmaceutical analytics worldwide.

Mycoplasma detection: Reduce your QC testing timelines with a PCR-based mycoplasma testing method that is regulatory agency accepted for accelerated lot release of multiple therapeutic modalities.	MycoSEQ mycoplasma detection system
Adventitious virus testing: Detect potential MMV and Vesi virus contamination from a wide range of sample types, safeguarding your bioprocess and the final drug product.	The ViralSEQ Virus Detection System includes integrated DNA purification and viral detection assays.
Microbial identification: Utilized by pharma companies worldwide for environmental monitoring, contamination investigation, root cause analysis, raw materials testing, and microbial identification.	MicroSEQ Rapid Microbial Identification System

Increase titers

Leverage our upstream services, catalog products and protein analytics to develop the media and feeds that drive optimal titers without compromising on product quality.

Custom upstream services: Tailor services ranging from catalog evaluation to complete process development to meet your unique production requirements, including your desired level of confidentiality and IP protection.	View our full-service offering, including: Cell line development Media development Analytical services Custom media production Formulation and process development
Proven Gibco cell culture catalog products: Entrust your cell culture needs to our comprehensive portfolio of high-performance products, manufactured in cGMP compliant facilities that are harmonized for redundant operation to ensure supply.	View Gibco bioprocessing cell culture offering: Cell line development CHO media for protein expression Feeds and supplements Viral vaccine production Serum
Improve protein quality: Shift the glycan expression to your desired profile and confirm with the only high throughput and high data quality glycan analysis platform.	Gibco GlycanTune Total Feeds

Design for efficiency

Production Chemical Custom Packaging Services: Simplify your process liquid and buffer manufacturing with fit-for-purpose solutions—ready-to-hydrate dry powder and ready-to-use liquid chemicals—to improve productivity, reduce total cost of ownership, and mitigate risks. View possibilities for fit-for-purpose solutions that meet your unique workflow specifications: Open architecture Manufacturing network flexibility Expertise and experience
Cell culture media formats: Address your particular bioprocessing application with cutting-edge Advanced Granulation Technology (AGT) to large-scale bioprocessing liquids. Select your optimal format, size, and packaging to meet your needs.	View media formats and made-to-order packaging solutions: Advanced Granulation Technology (AGT) Liquid media, feeds, and supplements Dry powder media (DPM)
Single-use mixing (S.U.M) platforms: Leverage our S.U.M. systems for all the productivity benefits of single-use technology, suited to the needs of media and bioprocess liquid preparation.	View options for top-down, stirred-tank or bottom-driven impulse mixing based on your application needs: HyPerforma Single-Use Mixer (S.U.M.) imPULSE Single-Use Mixer (S.U.M.) Docking mixing systems
Flexible single-use containment and transfer assemblies: Minimize time and labor intensive steps and streamline your process with ready-to-use BioProcess Containers (BPCs) and transfer assemblies for critical liquid handling applications.	View options to optimize your critical liquid handling steps, including: Standard BioProcess Containers (BPCs) Custom BioProcess Containers (BPCs) Fluid Transfer Solutions

Simplify scale-up

Combine our configurable control systems with production-scale single-use bioreactors to intensify the process of getting into production.

Additionally, our portfolio offers one of the broadest selections of cGMP production chemicals—across nearly every chemical class and category—enabling expedited scale-up and scale-out.

Production Chemicals and Services: Streamline operations with a comprehensive portfolio of proven solutions designed to improve productivity, reduce total cost of ownership, and mitigate risks with the support of our Lean experts. View options to simplify your workflows: Production Chemicals and Sourcing Services Production Chemical Custom Packaging Services Direct Material Supply Chain Services
Measurement and controls solutions: Assess and manage critical process parameters, like temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen, to optimize performance at difference scales and ensure smooth scale-up and reliable performance.	View comprehensive measurement and control solutions: Single-use sensors and transmitters Bioreactor controllers and software
Benchtop bioreactors: Utilizerockers and stirred-tank vessels for labscale or cGMP applications, ideal for both personalized workstation and seed train production applications.	Stirred-tank glass bioreactors Rocker bioreactors”
Production-scale bioreactors with 5:1 turndown ratio: Streamline bioprocesses by maximizing process vessel usage and reducing cell transfers and associated adaptation.	View our family of open architecture and integrated single-use bioreactors.

Ensure quality

Mycoplasma detection: Reduce your QC testing timelines with a PCR-based mycoplasma testing method that is regulatory agency accepted for accelerated lot release of multiple therapeutic modalities.	MycoSEQ mycoplasma detection system
Adventitious virus testing: Detect potential MMV and Vesi virus contamination from a wide range of sample types, safeguarding your bioprocess and the final drug product.	The ViralSEQ Virus Detection System includes integrated DNA purification and viral detection assays.
Microbial identification: Utilized by pharma companies worldwide for environmental monitoring, contamination investigation, root cause analysis, raw materials testing, and microbial identification.	MicroSEQ Rapid Microbial Identification System

Bioprocessing resources

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