Sea sponges offer hope for new medicines

(Phys.org)—Flinders University researcher Dr Jan Bekker is on a mission to chemically fingerprint South Australia's marine sponges, with the wider aim of identifying new compounds that could ultimately play an important ...

New oxygen producing mechanism proposed

(PhysOrg.com) -- Photosynthesis is the mechanism by which plants generate oxygen, but new research on a novel type of anaerobic bacteria supports the theory that bacteria produced their own oxygen long before the evolution ...

Bioreactor device helps frogs regenerate their legs

A team of scientists designed a device that can induce partial hindlimb regeneration in adult aquatic African clawed frogs (Xenopus laevis) by "kick-starting" tissue repair at the amputation site. Their findings, appearing ...

Scientists make human blood protein from rice

Scientists at a Chinese university said Monday they can use rice to make albumin, a protein found in human blood that is often used for treating burns, traumatic shock and liver disease.

Using algae to lock away greenhouse gas

The University of Kentucky Center for Applied Energy Research is developing green technology to capture carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants, using algae.

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Bioreactor

A bioreactor may refer to any manufactured or engineered device or system that supports a biologically active environment. In one case, a bioreactor is a vessel in which a chemical process is carried out which involves organisms or biochemically active substances derived from such organisms. This process can either be aerobic or anaerobic. These bioreactors are commonly cylindrical, ranging in size from litres to cubic metres, and are often made of stainless steel.

A bioreactor may also refer to a device or system meant to grow cells or tissues in the context of cell culture. These devices are being developed for use in tissue engineering or biochemical engineering.

On the basis of mode of operation, a bioreactor may be classified as batch, fed batch or continuous (e.g. a continuous stirred-tank reactor model). An example of a continuous bioreactor is the chemostat.

Organisms growing in bioreactors may be suspended or immobilized. A simple method, where cells are immobilized, is a Petri dish with agar gel. Large scale immobilized cell bioreactors are:

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