Can you speak to the media consumption and if the additional media cost is offset by other factors?

Answer

Media consumption in perfusion and N-1 perfusion are key points to consider and need to be optimized to avoid impact on CoG. Media manufacturers have been working on potential solutions to provide media suitable for the high VCDs and consequently high metabolism expected in this mode of culture. Specifically, with N-1 perfusion, the impact on CoG is less severe than in production perfusion because the perfusion mode is shorter (usually 5 to 7 days), and the volume is lower than a production reactor. Traditional media used for Fed Batch can still be used for N-1 perfusion, and the cost of media consumption can be offset by reducing the duration of the production bioreactor and for the higher productivity expected from the production bioreactor inoculated at higher cell density from N-1 perfusion.