Insulin Transferrin Selenium (ITS) is a specialized mixture of three biological molecules used in laboratories. This supplement provides a defined and consistent environment for growing various cell types in culture. ITS helps researchers maintain healthy cell cultures, a fundamental aspect of scientific investigations.
What Each Component Contributes
Each component of the ITS mixture serves a distinct function. Insulin, a polypeptide hormone, acts as a growth factor, promoting the uptake of glucose and amino acids by cells. This facilitates energy production and biosynthesis necessary for cell division and metabolic activity. Insulin also supports the intracellular transport and synthesis of proteins and nucleic acids, essential for cell proliferation.
Transferrin is a glycoprotein that binds and transports iron into cells. Iron is necessary for numerous cellular processes, including DNA synthesis and cellular respiration. By providing a stable and regulated source of iron, transferrin helps cells maintain proper function and supports their growth in culture. It also contributes to reducing harmful levels of oxygen radicals and peroxides.
Selenium, an essential trace element, functions as a cofactor for various antioxidant enzymes, such as glutathione peroxidase. Through this role, selenium helps protect cells from oxidative damage, which can impede cell viability. Its presence supports different metabolic pathways, ensuring cells remain robust during cultivation.
How Insulin Transferrin Selenium Supports Cell Growth
The combined action of insulin, transferrin, and selenium creates a synergistic effect that enhances cell growth and viability in laboratories. This specific combination provides a defined, serum-free, or reduced-serum environment, offering greater consistency than traditional serum-containing media. Serum-free conditions are often preferred because animal serum can introduce variability and contaminants, making experimental results less reliable.
Insulin ensures that cells have a steady supply of glucose and amino acids, which are the basic building blocks and energy sources for growth and division. Transferrin then facilitates the precise uptake of iron, a metal that, while necessary, can be toxic in unregulated amounts. This regulated iron delivery supports DNA synthesis and cell proliferation without causing oxidative stress from excess iron.
Selenium’s presence protects cells by acting as an antioxidant, safeguarding them from harmful reactive oxygen species that can accumulate in an artificial environment. This protection allows cells to maintain their structural integrity and functional capacity, leading to improved survival and growth. Together, these three components establish a stable and nourishing environment, allowing sensitive cell lines to thrive and produce consistent experimental outcomes. The defined nature of ITS also ensures that researchers can precisely control the culture conditions, beneficial for reproducible studies.
Common Uses in Scientific Research
Insulin Transferrin Selenium finds widespread application in cell culture. It is particularly beneficial for culturing sensitive cell lines, including primary cells and stem cells, where a controlled and consistent environment is necessary. ITS helps improve the growth and viability of a broad range of cell types, proving advantageous in serum-free or reduced-serum conditions where cells might otherwise lack necessary growth factors.
ITS is employed in drug discovery, where consistent cell behavior is important for testing new compounds and understanding their effects. In vaccine development, it supports the propagation of cells used to produce viral antigens, ensuring high yields and purity. For stem cell research, ITS maintains specific cell characteristics and supports their differentiation into various cell types, which is foundational for regenerative medicine.
ITS is also used in gene therapy, aiding the growth of cells that serve as vehicles for delivering genetic material. Researchers often prefer ITS over traditional serum-containing media due to its consistent performance and reduced experimental variability. This consistency, along with ethical considerations related to animal-derived products, makes ITS a preferred supplement for advanced biological studies.