Primary cells are isolated directly from donor tissue and reflect the differentiated state of that tissue. However, they are finite in supply and show donor-to-donor variability. iPSC-derived cells are generated by reprogramming somatic cells to pluripotency and re-differentiating them. This enables an unlimited, genetically defined supply. The trade-off is that iPSC-derived cells are often less mature than their in vivo counterparts, and may require extended culture to reach a fully differentiated phenotype.
Cells & Cell Culture
iPSC-Derived Cells and Reprogramming Reagents
iPSC-derived cells for human, donor-matched disease modelling and drug screening
iPSC-derived cells give you differentiated human cell types that preserve the donor genetic background. This makes them well suited to your studies in neurodegeneration, cardiac toxicity, or liver metabolism in a genuinely human genetic context.
Ready-to-use iPSC-derived cells cover five key research areas: neuroscience, including models for ALS, Alzheimer's, Huntington's and Parkinson's disease; neuroinflammation; ophthalmology; dermatology; and cardiovascular research. Each area offers cell types and assays matched to your field's disease models and drug screening needs.
For more than cells alone, complete kits pair your iPSC-derived cells with the culture media, supplements and reagents they need, grouped together to get you results sooner.
Additional products round out your workflow: specialised media and supplements that speed up cell maturation, essential growth factors such as BDNF, CNTF and NGF, and solutions for expansion and passaging of your cells.
Choosing between iPSC-derived cell options
- Start with your research area: neuroscience, including ALS, Alzheimer's, Huntington's and Parkinson's disease, neuroinflammation, ophthalmology, dermatology or cardiovascular research. Select the matching iPSC-derived cell types and assays.
- Need cells with your specific genetics: choose lines or cells carrying defined disease-relevant backgrounds or mutations, plus appropriate healthy controls.
- Already maintaining iPSCs in your lab: use xeno-free, feeder-free iPSC media and supplement kits, optionally with hydrogels for 3D or organoid formats, to keep your cultures stable and scalable.
- Want to establish your own iPSC-derived cells: start from somatic cells with non-integrating reprogramming kits, such as mRNA-based methods, then expand in xeno-free media and confirm pluripotency with alkaline phosphatase or another marker assay.
Applications
Disease modelling
Patient or CRISPR-edited iPSC lines differentiate into neurons, cardiomyocytes or hepatocytes for disease study. Pluripotency kits confirm reprogramming quality first.
Drug screening
Patient-specific iPSC neurons, cardiomyocytes and organoids let you test compounds on cells matching a donor's genetics, catching responses rodent models can miss.
Regenerative medicine research
iPSC-derived cells model engraftment and functional recovery pre-clinically, informing therapy strategies. Cell tracking reagents follow transplanted cells.
Developmental biology
Stepwise differentiation protocols recreate embryonic development in vitro, including 3D organoid culture, letting you dissect lineage-commitment signalling.
Neuroinflammation research
iPSC-derived microglia and astrocytes model signalling seen in ALS, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, supporting glia-neuron crosstalk studies.
Ophthalmology and retinal disease modelling
iPSC-derived retinal pigment epithelium and photoreceptors support macular degeneration research and inherited retinal disease screening.
Frequently asked questions
Standard QC includes morphological inspection for compact colonies with a high nucleus-to-cytoplasm ratio, alkaline phosphatase staining for pluripotency activity, and immunostaining for Oct4, Sox2, and Nanog transcription factors. Karyotyping confirms genomic stability. Teratoma assays or embryoid body formation confirm trilineage differentiation potential in more rigorous QC pipelines.
Xeno-free media and matrices contain no animal-derived components. This reduces exposure to animal-derived components and lot variability. It does not remove the need for sterility, pathogen, and functional QC that could confound downstream assays or disqualify cells for clinical translation. Defined xeno-free systems also improve reproducibility, because undefined animal-derived components such as serum or Matrigel vary between lots.
Yes. iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes are widely used in cardiotoxicity screening, because they express the ion channels responsible for QT prolongation risk. iPSC-derived hepatocytes are used for hepatotoxicity assessment. Because these cells carry the same genome as the donor, they also allow pharmacogenomic investigations into individual variation in drug metabolism.
Product catalogs
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