Open AccessVarious factors affect lipopolysaccharide sensitization in cell cultures
Author(s) -
Nan Yang,
Don D. Sin,
Delbert R. Dorscheid
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
biotechniques/biotechniques
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.617
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1940-9818
pISSN - 0736-6205
DOI - 10.2144/btn-2020-0043
Subject(s) - lipopolysaccharide , fetal bovine serum , sensitization , cell culture , cell , immunology , chemistry , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , biochemistry , genetics
Commercially available lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is commonly used in research. Although protocols for its use are well established, we experienced a loss of LPS responsiveness in our cell cultures despite no obvious experimental changes. Our cell lines were stimulated with LPS and the media quantified for LPS responsiveness via an IL-8 ELISA. We discovered that the major cause of signal loss was differences in fetal bovine serum (FBS) formulation and concentration. One FBS formulation was notably better at eliciting an IL-8 signal than the second FBS, and 10% FBS in media was better at inducing LPS responsiveness than lower concentrations. We urge researchers to be aware of inherent variations in seemingly commonplace reagents as they may be unexpected sources of inconsistencies.