Coriell Institute for Medical Research
Coriell Institute of Medical Research
  • Request a Quote
  • Donate
  • Login
  • View Cart
Sample Catalog | Custom Services | Core Facilities | Genomic Data Search
  • Biobank
    • NIGMS
    • NINDS
    • NIA
    • NHGRI
    • NEI
    • Allen Cell Collection
    • Rett Syndrome iPSC Collection
    • Autism Research Resource
    • HD Community Biorepository
    • CDC Cell and DNA
    • J. Craig Venter Institute
    • Orphan Disease Center Collection
    • All Biobanks
  • Research
    • Overview
    • Meet Our Scientists
      • Our Faculty
      • Our Scientific Staff
    • Camden Cancer Research Center
    • Epigenetic Therapies SPORE
    • Core Facilities
    • Epigenomics
    • Camden Opioid Research Initiative (CORI)
    • The Issa & Jelinek Lab
    • The Jian Huang Lab
    • The Luke Chen Lab
      • The Lab
      • The Team
      • Publications
    • The Scheinfeldt Lab
    • The Shumei Song Lab
    • The Nora Engel Lab
      • The Lab
      • The Team
      • Publications
    • Publications
  • Services
    • Overview
    • Biobanking Services
      • Core Services
      • Project Management
      • Research Support Services
      • Sample Cataloging
      • Sample Collection Kits
      • Sample Data Management
      • Sample Distribution
      • Sample Management
      • Sample Procurement
      • Sample Storage
    • Bioinformatics and Biostatistics Services
    • Cellular and Molecular Services
      • Biomarker Research Solutions
      • Cell Culture
      • Nucleic Acid Isolation and Quality Control
    • Clinical Trial Support
      • Overview
      • Sample Collection
      • Data Management
      • Sample Processing and QC
      • Storage and Distribution
      • Biomarker Services
      • Data Analaysis
    • Core Facilties
      • Overview
      • Animal and Xenograft
      • Bioinformatics and Biostatistics
      • Cell Imaging
      • CRISPR Gene Engineering
      • Flow Cytometry and Cell Sorting
      • Genomics and Epigenomics
      • iPSC - Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
      • Organoids
    • Coriell Marketplace
    • Genomic, Epigenomic and Multiomics Services
    • Stem Cells and iPSC Services
      • Core Services
      • Reprogramming
      • Characterization and Quality Control
      • Differentiated Cell Lines
      • iPSC-Derived Organoids
      • iPSC Expansion
      • iPSC Gene Editing
  • Ordering
    • Stem Cells
    • Cell Lines
    • DNA and RNA
    • Featured Products
      • FFPE
      • HMW DNA
    • Genomic Data Search
    • Search by Catalog ID
    • Help
      • Create Account
      • Order Online
      • Ordering FAQ
      • FAQs/Culture Instructions
      • Reference Materials
        • Biobanks
        • NIGMS Repository
        • NHGRI Repository
        • NINDS Repository
        • NIA Repository
        • NIST
        • GeT-RM
      • Secondary Distribution Policies
      • MTA Assurance Form
      • Shipment Policy
      • Contact Customer Service
  • About Us
    • Our History
    • Meet Our Team
    • Meet Our Board
    • Education
      • Science Fair
      • Summer Experience
      • Outreach
      • Research Program Internship
    • Press Room
      • Press Releases
      • Coriell Blog
      • Annual Report
    • Careers
      • Working at Coriell
    • Giving
      • Donate
      • Giving FAQ
    • Contact Us
    • Legal Notice
  • Login View Cart
search submit
Is Heat Inactivation of Fetal Bovine Serum Necessary or Recommended?

Heating serum to 56°C for 30 minutes was used in the past to inactivate the complement system for immunoassays. Heat activation has also been reported to inactivate other undetermined inhibitors of cell growth in culture. However, the practice is labor-intensive and expensive. The protocol must be followed exactly as too high a temperature or too long a time may destroy some growth factors.

On occasion heat inactivation of serum is used because of previous history in the laboratory or for the convenience of stocking only one kind of serum.

In past years, Coriell used all heat-inactivated serum for its cell cultures to inactivate the complement protein found in newborn calf serum. Since we have changed to fetal bovine serum, we find that heat inactivation is not necessary for most cell lines. Occasionally we do find a differentiated cell line that grows better in heat inactivated serum, but for most lymphoblast and fibroblast lines it does not seem to make a difference whether the serum is heat inactivated or not.

The online Coriell catalogs list the serum that was used to create the initial cell line (either heat inactivated or "not inactivated"). As we make an expansion lot of the cell line, the culture conditions are changed to reflect the current practice ("not inactivated" for most cell lines).

If your laboratory normally stocks heat-inactivated serum, you can probably use it without a problem. In fact, many of the labs that use Coriell cell lines do use heat-inactivated serum.

Our mission is to prevent and cure disease through biomedical research.

CONTACT US

CUSTOMER SERVICE
customerservice@coriell.org (800) 752-3805 • (856) 757-4848
Subscribe to our newsletter here

Coriell Institute for Medical Research
403 Haddon Avenue Camden, NJ 08103, USA (856) 966-7377

Ⓒ 2025 Coriell Institute. All rights reserved.

  • Facebook
  • Linkedin
  • Youtube