The company has announced the availability of two added formulations of Basement Membrane Extract (BME).
Designed for organoid growth and the xenograft models, the BMEs are known as Cultrex BME 2 and Cultrex BME 3.
The two products have been developed to address the heterogeneous nature of tissue and organ microenvironments that arise from organ specific stromal cells, proteoglycans and protein composition.
BME 2 is based upon a proprietary formulation that is higher in tensile strength than original Matrigel or Cultrex BME.
This growth factor reduced product is recommended for organoid growth applications including 3D cell culture from stem cells.
By comparison, BME 3 has been developed to be physiologically aligned with the in vivo tumour environment and is recommended for xenografts, tumorgrafts and other in vivo applications.
Basement membranes are degraded and regenerated during development and they not only support cell and cell layers, but also aid tissue organisation and differentiation.
Additionally, the major components of BME include laminin, collagen IV, entactin, and heparin sulphate proteoglycan.