MEM, Alpha Modification - sterile-filtered, for cell culture, With stable glutamine and sodium bicarbonate, with ribonucleosides and deoxyribonucleosides, liquid

Cat. No.: M755917

GRADE & PURITY Sterile-filtered, for Cell culture, With stable glutamine and sodium bicarbonate, with ribonucleosides and deoxyribonucleosides, liquid

Storage

Store at 2-8°C

Shipped In

Wet ice

Overview

This MEM differs from the original formula, because it is supplemented with L-alanyl-L-glutamine dipeptide. Glutamine is notoriously unstable in cell culture. This dipeptide provides a more stable form of glutamine for use in cell cultures.

This is the most enriched variation of the MEM formulation offered. It contains all 21 normal amino acids, some at increased concentrations. In addition, it contains 5 additional vitamins.

Specifications

Specifications & Purity

sterile-filtered, for cell culture, With stable glutamine and sodium bicarbonate, with ribonucleosides and deoxyribonucleosides, liquid

Storage

Store at 2-8°C

Shipped In

Wet ice

This product requires cold chain shipping. Ground and other economy services are not available.

Grade

for Cell culture, Sterile-filtered

Application Protocols

General protocol for using α-MEM in mammalian cell culture (literature guidance; optimize per cell line and verify against this item’s CoA/Spec Sheet):

• Preparation and warming:
  • Store sealed at 2–8°C. Before use, aseptically dispense only the volume needed and warm to 37°C in a water bath or incubator. Avoid repeated warming/cooling of the stock bottle.
• Supplementation (as required by the method/cell line):
  • Serum: Add sterile FBS (commonly 5–20% v/v, cell-dependent) or a defined supplement. Mix gently; do not introduce bubbles.
  • Glutamine: Add L-glutamine (e.g., 1–4 mM) or a stable dipeptide equivalent if not already present in the formulation.
  • Optional: Antibiotics/antimycotics (use only as needed), HEPES buffer for extra-CO2 handling, sodium pyruvate, nucleosides — compatibility depends on formulation and cell needs.
• Seeding and maintenance:
  • Seed cells at densities recommended for the specific line. Incubate at 37°C, 5–10% CO2, high humidity.
  • Monitor pH (phenol red color, if present) and confluence; change medium every 2–3 days or as required by metabolic load.
• Passaging:
  • Use appropriate dissociation reagents (e.g., trypsin-EDTA) per cell line SOPs. Neutralize, centrifuge if needed, and resuspend in fresh supplemented α-MEM.
• Quality controls:
  • Routinely test cultures for mycoplasma. Record lot numbers and dates of opening. Filter any in-house supplement mixes through sterile 0.2 µm filters.

Note: This is general guidance for research use only and not a substitute for cell line–specific SOPs.

Biological Roles

α-MEM functions as a defined extracellular environment supplying essential nutrients, ions, and buffering capacity to support mammalian cells in vitro.

General/literature description of roles and key components:

• Inorganic salts (e.g., Na+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Cl−, phosphate) maintain osmotic pressure, membrane potential, and serve as cofactors for enzymes.
• Amino acids provide substrates for protein synthesis and intermediary metabolism; the alpha modification typically adjusts the spectrum and levels relative to classical MEM to better support growth of a broader set of cells (exact profile is formulation-specific; check CoA).
• Vitamins/cofactors support redox balance and anabolic pathways; light-sensitive components (e.g., riboflavin) can degrade under illumination.
• Carbon source (commonly D-glucose) fuels glycolysis and the TCA cycle; glucose concentration in α-MEM is formulation-dependent in the literature.
• Buffering system (often bicarbonate/CO2) maintains physiological pH; some workflows add HEPES for pH stability during handling outside CO2 incubators (compatibility depends on the specific formulation and cell type).
• Optional constituents in some α-MEM variants include sodium pyruvate and nucleosides; these may affect proliferation and metabolic state. Verify the exact content for this item in the CoA/Spec Sheet before designing experiments.

Use context:

• As a basal medium, α-MEM typically requires supplementation (e.g., fetal bovine serum or defined growth supplements; glutamine source) tailored to the target cell type’s requirements.

Buffer Applications

While not a classical “buffer” in the analytical chemistry sense, α-MEM includes a buffering system to maintain near-physiological pH during mammalian cell culture.

General/literature guidance (verify against this item’s CoA/Spec Sheet):

• Bicarbonate/CO2 system: Many α-MEM formulations rely on sodium bicarbonate in conjunction with a 5–10% CO2 incubator atmosphere, stabilizing pH ~7.2–7.4 at 37°C. Exact bicarbonate content varies by manufacturer.
• HEPES supplementation (optional): For procedures outside a CO2 incubator (e.g., extended microscopy), users often add 10–25 mM HEPES to enhance pH stability (check compatibility with the specific cell line and with the medium’s composition).
• Phenol red indicator: Some formulations include phenol red to provide a visual cue of pH drift; indicator presence can interfere with optical assays and hormone signaling studies, so phenol red–free media are preferred in those cases (verify whether this item contains phenol red on the label/CoA).
• Osmolality control: Maintain within the recommended range for the target cells; avoid excessive evaporation by using humidified incubators and well-sealed cultureware.

Practical notes:

• Equilibrate freshly warmed medium in the CO2 incubator for 15–30 minutes before use to reach gas and temperature equilibrium.
• Avoid repeated CO2/pH cycling of the same bottle; dispense working aliquots aseptically to minimize pH/osmolality drift and contamination risk.

Green Alternatives

Not applicable in the conventional green-chemistry sense. This product is a sterile, water-based biological medium rather than an organic solvent or synthesis reagent.

Sustainability considerations (general lab practice):

• Minimize waste by preparing only the volume needed and by aliquoting supplements to reduce discard from repeated warm/cool cycles.
• Store at 2–8°C and avoid unnecessary warming to extend shelf life and reduce energy usage from repeated incubations.
• Dispose of used medium as biohazardous waste per institutional and local regulations; do not discharge to drain.

Pharmaceutical Uses

This product is designated “For research use only.” It is not intended for diagnostic or therapeutic use and is not indicated as GMP-grade.

Context in pharmaceutical R&D and bioprocess development (general, not item-specific claims):

• Cell-based assays: α-MEM is frequently employed as a basal medium for screening assays (e.g., viability, reporter, enzymatic activity) after appropriate supplementation tailored to the model cell line.
• Early upstream development: For exploratory cloning, transfection, and small-scale expansion of mammalian cells where α-MEM is specified by platform methods or historical lab practices.
• Raw material considerations: Regulated applications typically require documented supplier quality systems, change control, and detailed CoA specifications (e.g., endotoxin, osmolality, pH, bioburden). Such attributes are Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet and your QA/QC requirements if considering use beyond basic research.
• Assay interference: If optical or electrochemical readouts are used, verify whether the formulation contains phenol red or other additives that may affect background signal.

Traceability and documentation:

• Record lot numbers and retain CoAs to ensure reproducibility across studies, especially for regulated method development workflows.

Physical Properties

This product is a sterile-filtered, aqueous cell culture medium. Mixture properties are provided as general/literature guidance; consult the CoA/Spec Sheet for lot-specific data.

Item-specific values:

• Appearance: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.
• pH (as supplied): Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.
• Osmolality: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.
• Density, refractive index: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.

General/literature characteristics for α-MEM-type media (typical ranges; not product specifications):

• Physical state: Clear, aqueous solution; fully miscible with water; not miscible with nonpolar solvents.
• Typical pH range (at 25–37°C, 5–10% CO2 equilibrated, bicarbonate-buffered media): ~7.2–7.4 (literature).
• Typical osmolality: ~260–340 mOsm/kg (literature), formulation-dependent.
• Buffering system: Frequently sodium bicarbonate/CO2; some users add HEPES for enhanced pH stability outside CO2 incubators (literature practice; verify compatibility).

Notes for practical use (general):

• Warm only the volume needed to ~37°C before use; avoid prolonged warming to limit nutrient degradation.
• Protect from light if the formulation contains photosensitive components (e.g., riboflavin, phenol red) — composition is formulation-specific; verify on CoA/label.

Quality and Grades

Grade/Purity for this item:

• Sterile-filtered, for Cell culture (as provided in Product Data).

What this grade generally implies:

• Sterile filtration through a validated membrane and aseptic filling to minimize bioburden. Exact pore size, sterility test methods (e.g., USP <71>), and endotoxin limits are not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.
• Intended for research cell culture workflows, including maintenance, expansion, and in vitro assays. Not produced under GMP unless explicitly stated (not specified here).

Common QC attributes for cell culture media (informational; not item specifications):

• Appearance (clear, free of particulates), pH (at 25°C), osmolality, sterility, and sometimes endotoxin and mycoplasma testing. Component assay ranges may be composition-dependent.

Stabilizer/additives:

• Presence of stabilizers (e.g., phenol red indicator, HEPES buffer, L-glutamine versus L-alanyl-L-glutamine dipeptide, sodium pyruvate, nucleosides) varies by α-MEM variant and supplier. For this item, specific additives are not specified; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.

Practical quality notes:

• Use by the labeled expiry date. Record lot numbers for reproducibility.
• Where sensitive assays are planned (e.g., fluorescence imaging), verify whether the formulation contains phenol red or other chromophores that may interfere.

Reaction and Applications

Chemical reaction applications are not applicable to this multicomponent cell culture medium. Instead, α-MEM serves as a physiological nutrient environment for in vitro mammalian cell culture.

Research applications (general, literature-based):

• Maintenance and expansion of many primary and continuous mammalian cell types that are compatible with α-MEM formulations (e.g., fibroblast-like cells, certain epithelial lines, mesenchymal stromal cells; cell line-dependent).
• Use as a basal medium for transfection, selection, and clonal expansion workflows when supplemented appropriately (e.g., with FBS/sera and antibiotics/antimycotics, as needed).
• Supports functional assays (enzyme activity, reporter assays, differentiation protocols) where α-MEM is specified by method SOPs. Always verify exact supplement requirements and any “with/without nucleosides,” glutamine source, and pyruvate content on the item’s CoA/specification before adopting or reproducing literature protocols.

Reaction Conditions

Not applicable to chemical synthesis. This product is not used in stoichiometric or catalytic chemical reactions.

Operational conditions for biological use (general, literature-based guidance; verify against this item’s CoA/Spec Sheet and cell-line SOPs):

• Temperature: Typically 37°C for mammalian cells.
• Atmosphere: Humidified incubator with 5–10% CO2 when using bicarbonate-buffered media.
• Medium changes: Replace 50–100% of the medium at intervals appropriate for the cell type and density (commonly every 2–3 days) or when pH/phenol red indicator suggests acidification.
• Supplements: Add sterile FBS or defined serum alternatives, L-glutamine or stable dipeptide equivalents, and antibiotics/antimycotics as required by the application. Specific concentrations depend on the cell model.

These conditions are general practice; exact parameters must be optimized for each cell type and verified for compatibility with the specific α-MEM formulation supplied in this item.

Safety and Handling

Safety information for this item has not been specified; always consult the SDS for authoritative guidance.

Item-specific hazard info:

• GHS classification, signal word, pictograms, H-statements: Not specified for this item; refer to SDS.

General laboratory handling (for sterile cell culture media):

• Use appropriate PPE: lab coat, gloves, and safety glasses. Work in a certified biosafety cabinet (Class II) when opening/handling to maintain sterility and prevent aerosol exposure.
• Aseptic technique is essential to avoid microbial contamination.
• Avoid ingestion and contact with eyes or skin. In case of contact, rinse with plenty of water. If ingested or if adverse exposure occurs, seek medical advice and provide the SDS.
• Storage incompatibilities: Keep tightly closed. Do not mix with oxidizers, acids/bases, or reactive chemicals unnecessarily. Avoid microbial sources and unsterile accessories.
• Temperature sensitivity: Many medium components (e.g., L-glutamine, vitamins) degrade with heat and prolonged light exposure; minimize time at room temperature or 37°C unless in active use.
• Spill/cleanup: Wipe with disinfectant (e.g., 70% ethanol or appropriate quaternary ammonium), then water. Dispose of waste per institutional biosafety procedures.
• Biohazard note: Once used with cells or biological materials, treat the medium as biohazardous waste.

Always defer to the product’s SDS and institutional EHS policies for specific first-aid measures, exposure limits, and disposal guidance.

Solvent Selection

Not typically applicable. This product is an aqueous, ready-to-use cell culture medium rather than a reaction solvent. For method compatibility:

• It is water-based and fully miscible with water; it is not intended to be mixed with organic solvents. If sterile supplements are required (e.g., FBS, antibiotics, buffers), add them as sterile aqueous solutions prepared under aseptic conditions.
• For extra-CO2 work (e.g., microscopy outside incubators), users sometimes supplement with HEPES buffer (literature practice). Verify compatibility with your cells and with this item’s composition on the CoA/Spec Sheet before use.

Storage and Reconstitution

Item-specific storage/shipping conditions (from Product Data):

• Storage: Store at 2–8°C.
• Shipped in: Wet ice.

Additional handling guidance (general best practices for sterile liquid media):

• Protect from light to limit degradation of photosensitive components (e.g., riboflavin, and indicator dyes if present). The presence of such components for this item is Not specified; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.
• Do not freeze unless the label/CoA explicitly permits; freeze–thaw cycles can precipitate salts and degrade nutrients.
• After opening, minimize headspace exposure and maintain aseptic technique. Consider aliquoting into sterile containers to reduce contamination risk and repeated warming.
• Do not return warmed medium to the stock bottle. Warm only the amount required to ~37°C immediately before use.
• Shelf life/expiry and lot-specific QC values (pH, osmolality, sterility, endotoxin) are Not specified for this item; refer to the product label and CoA.

Reconstitution:

• This item is supplied as a sterile-filtered liquid; no reconstitution is required. If supplements are added, prepare sterile, concentrated stock solutions and add aseptically to the medium. Verify compatibility of all supplements with the specific α-MEM formulation and intended cell type.

Research use note:

• For research use only. Not for human or veterinary use.

Structure and Identity

Minimum Essential Medium, Alpha Modification (α-MEM) is a multicomponent, water-based cell culture basal medium formulated for the in vitro maintenance and propagation of mammalian cells. It is a mixture, not a single defined compound, and therefore has no single molecular structure.

Item-specific identifiers (for this catalog item):

• CAS: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.
• SMILES / InChI / InChIKey: Not applicable to multicomponent mixtures.
• Molecular formula: Not applicable (mixture).
• Molecular weight: Not applicable (mixture).

Structural/ compositional features (general literature description):

• Contains inorganic salts (for osmotic balance and membrane potential), amino acids (essential building blocks), vitamins and cofactors (supporting metabolism), an energy source (commonly glucose), and a buffering system (commonly bicarbonate/CO2; exact buffer varies by formulation/vendor).
• “Alpha modification” of Eagle’s MEM is a reformulation designed to enhance nutrient balance versus classical MEM; depending on variant, α-MEM may include elevated levels of certain amino acids and vitamins, and may be supplied with or without nucleosides (check item CoA/specification for exact composition).

2D/functional description in words:

• A clear, aqueous solution containing small-molecule nutrients and salts; no defined ring systems or discrete functional groups are attributable to the product as a whole because it is a mixture of many chemically distinct components.

Synthetic Utility

Not applicable. α-MEM is a biological growth medium rather than a synthetic organic reagent or building block. It is not used as a reagent in named organic reactions or for preparative chemical synthesis. For applications relevant to this product, see the Biological Roles, Buffer Applications, Pharmaceutical Uses, and Application Protocols sections.

Target Specificity

Not applicable. This product is a basal cell culture medium and does not have antigen/epitope specificity, clone information, or species reactivity attributes. For applicability to particular cell types, consult literature references and your cell-line provider’s recommendations, and verify this item’s exact composition on the CoA/Spec Sheet.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does for cell culture mean?

for cell culture indicates that the product has been processed and tested for cell culture and tissue engineering. Specifications may include endotoxin limits, microbial controls, sterility, low DNase/RNase/protease activity, and verified biological activity where relevant.

What does sterile-filtered mean?

sterile-filtered indicates that the material has been processed and tested for specialty industrial processing. Specifications focus on the impurities that affect performance in that application — for example, metal content for electronics, particle size for batteries, refractive index for optics, or moisture content for moisture-sensitive processes.

How should this product be stored?

Store at 2–8 °C. Refrigerated storage is required to maintain the specified shelf life.

How is this product shipped?

This product ships chilled on wet ice. Unpack on arrival and transfer it to the storage condition stated above.

What documentation is provided?

Available product documentation, including Certificates of Analysis (COA), Safety Data Sheets (SDS), and specification sheets, is shown in the product document area. Document availability and access follow the current site policy.