Ferentis　Cell Culture Hydrogel|Tokyo Future Style is a bio-tech trading company

Introduction – Welcome to Ferentis

Ferentis is a research-intensive biotechnology company involved in the development, production and commercialisation of biomimetic peptides and peptide-based scaffolds for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine applications. Ferentis was established in Vilnius, Lithuania, by a group of scientists and entrepreneurs from Canada, Lithuania, Sweden and India.

Our products are based on state-of-the-art research in the fields of biomaterials, enhanced cell regeneration, medicinal chemistry, peptidomimetics and surface nano technology. Our founders have extensive experience leading multi-disciplinary research groups and successfully translating their research discoveries into clinical studies.

The mission of Ferentis is to develop “smart” biomaterials that can promote regeneration of tissue cells within the patient without the need for long-term immunosuppressive drugs. Ferentis’ range of products are designed to mimic the biologically-active extracellular matrix of the body that serves as scaffolding and glue to keep the body intact, as well as providing instructions for the repair and regeneration of tissues and organs.

Technology – Biosynthetic hydrogel material for 3D cell culture and tissue engineering

Ferentis has developed a unique biosynthetic tissue matrix technology that has a wide range of applications in cell culture and tissue engineering. It is based on proprietary hydrogel formulations that combine the best of polymer science and cell biology, to create constructs that mimic the extracellular matrix (ECM). Depending on research application, we can offer several formulations of hydrogel, ranging from collagen-based to collagen-mimetic-peptide (CMP) based hydrogels.

Key features of Ferentis hydrogels

●Natural 3-D architecture of highly crosslinked biosynthetic hydrogel (CMP)
●Chemically and physically defined (CMP)
●Non-animal origin, biosynthetic source (CMP)
●Retains shape for microfabrication (micromoulding, micropatterning)
●Easy to handle and transfer
●Fully transparent for microscopy analysis
●Supportive of the proliferation of human epithelial corneal cells (HCECs), skin fibroblasts and keratinocytes, astrocytes and microglia, neuronal differentiation and viability of brain slice cultures

 

Guide to Choosing Hydrogel Material

Collagen is the main compound of extracellular matrix and plays an important role in tissue development and structural integrity maintenance. Our products are made of two types of basic material: porcine collagen and synthetic collagen mimetic peptide conjugated to polyethylene glycol. This table is compiled to help you choose the right material for your study.

Feature

	Porcine collagen (PC)	Collagen mimetic peptide (CMP)
Origin	Animal	Synthetic, animal free
Main structural element	Collagen	Self-assembling peptide sequences from collagen
Structure	Made of parallel collagen fibers with pores up to several µm	Forms a fibrillary net with nanopores up to 0.4 µm
Stiffness	Stiffer, more resistant to physical damage	Softer, needs to be handled with care
Transparency	Transparent enough to visualize cells under brightfield and fluorescent microscope, however, some larger pores are also visible under brightfield	Good resolution of cell images for both brightfield and fluorescence
Moulding	Both types can be easily molded to preferred shape
Patterning	Both types can be patterned with molecules of choice
Composition modifications	Additives can be mixed into the hydrogel, but not introduced into the structure core	Bioactive sequences can be introduced into the structural core
Price	Cheaper because of less complex production steps and cheaper source material	More expensive material and process

---

Products

In Vitro Products – Self-Assembling Peptide Hydrogel Products For Cell Culture

We ship our gels as ready-to use culture bases including multiwell plate inserts (hydrogel disks) of various diameters, custom hydrogel sheets, specialized kits or even organotypic model scaffolds, such as eye cornea. Because our crosslinked hydrogels retain their shape, we can make micromoulded or micropatterned surfaces of our hydrogel to your specifications. Our hydrogels are based on proprietary peptides, which-self assemble into nanometer-scale fibrous structure. This platform allows us to custom-design specific sequences and/or formulations for different cell culture/tissue types. When ordering, please tell us about your experiment and cell culture type you would like to be using our products with, and we will assist you in choosing the appropriate product.

Product informartion sheet of Hydrogel disks CMP（PDF）

 

Multiwell plate hydrogel inserts

Self assembling collagen mimetic peptide and porcine collagen hydrogel discs for in vitro cell cultures. Cellular adhesion, proliferation, process outgrowth and interaction can be modulated by changing hydrogel stiffness, introducing surface active molecules, surface patterning, or shaping hydrogel surface to fit special experimental needs.

Cell Culture Substrate Products

	Catalog No. (peptide-based)	Catalog No. (collagen-based)	Dimensions, mm*	Packaging
Sampler kit Multiwell plate hydrogel inserts	HY0618	PC0618	2×6 Ø x 0,5 2×10 Ø x 0,5 2×15 Ø x 0,5	Hydrogel disks in vial, in PBS solution 2 pcs/vial. X 3
Multiwell plate hydrogel inserts, 96 wp*	HY06	PC06	6 Ø x 0,5	Hydrogel disks in vial, in PBS solution 12 pcs/vial.
Multiwell plate hydrogel inserts, 48, wp, 24 wp	HY10	PC10	10 Ø x 0,5	Hydrogel disks in vial, in PBS solution 12 pcs/vial.
Multiwell plate hydrogel inserts, 24 wp	HY15	PC15	15 Ø x 0,5	Hydrogel disks in vial, in PBS solution 12 pcs/vial.
Multiwell plate hydrogel inserts,12 wp, 6 wp	HY18	PC18	18 Ø x 0,5	Hydrogel disks in vial, in PBS solution 12 pcs/vial.

*Please see product notes below

FOR RESEARCH USE ONLY. NOT FOR USE IN HUMAN THERAPEUTIC OR DIAGNOSTIC APPLICATIONS.

 

Product Notes:

• Our hydrogels can be made to other dimension or packing specifications.
• The diameters provided for the individual cell-culture plate wells are provided for orientation only; disks of some dimensions will have room left around the well wall.
• We can package other quantities or manufacture other sheet dimensions per your specification.

Tissue slice culture kit

A simple system comprising biocompatible hydrogel disks on proprietary plastic supports to ensure key demands of tissue culture: superior aeration, constant medium feeding and metabolite exchange. After each experiment, the tissue holding hydrogel can be easily transferred to a lower volume multi-well plate for immunocytochemistry. It can also go together with the tissue slice on it through paraffin embedding stages or cryofixation, keeping tissue structure unaffected by any of these manipulations. Tissue on hydrogels may be monitored under inverted and direct microscopes and can be easily accessed by electrodes for electrophysiology studies. More about the product.

Product List

	Catalog No.	Dimensions, mm*	Packaging
Tissue slice culture kit	TSK10	10 Ø x 0,5	Hydrogel disks in vial, in PBS solution, plastic supports, qty. on request

FOR RESEARCH USE ONLY. NOT FOR USE IN HUMAN THERAPEUTIC OR DIAGNOSTIC APPLICATIONS.

Product Notes:

• Well plate well diameters provided for orientation only; disks of some dimensions will intentionally have room left around the well wall for better exchange of medium.
• Well plates not included
• We can package other quantities or manufacture other disk dimensions per your specification.

 

Micromoulded/patterned hydrogel chips

Because our croslinked hydrogels are shape-retaining, we microfabricate surface topography structured or surface micro-patterned hydrogel disks or sheets for cell guidance. These may include microchannels or microprinted lines of bioactive materials.

Channel-guided human skin fibroblasts

We can custom design a hydrogel with specific micropatterned/micromoulded patterns. As these are custom projects, the pricing will be determined based on time and materials needed to implement a design.

Introductory examples of micromoulded/micropatterned hydrogels

	Specifications	Dimensions	Surface modifications/ micromoulding	Packaging
	Multiwell plate hydrogel insert, 96 wp, with microwells	6 mmØ x 500µm	Microwells for spheroid culture, 400x400x200 µm, array of [166 wells.	Ready to use hydrogel disks/sheets in vial, in PBS solution.
	Micromoulded hydrogel sheet with microchannels for cell guidance	1,5 x 1,5 mm	Microchannel lines, width, µm: 30, 50, 60, 200, 500; depth, µm: [20.
	Nanostructured multiwell plate hydrogel insert, 96 wp	6 mmØ x 500µm	Microwell topography for cell adhesion, square width, µm: 1,5 x 1,5; depth, µm: [0,5; array area, mm: 5 x 5.
	Corneal model (rabbit)	13Ø x0,35	Cornea-shaped (curved)

FOR RESEARCH USE ONLY. NOT FOR USE IN HUMAN THERAPEUTIC OR DIAGNOSTIC APPLICATIONS.

---

Applications – Hydrogel Applications for cell culture

3D Cell Culture Formation

Primary neurons and glia from developing rat cerebellum on Ferentis collagen mimetic peptide hydrogel (left) and tissue culture plastic.

Neurons are immunostained yellow for microtubule associated protein 2, astrocytes are stained red for glial fibrillary acidic protein, microglia are marked green with fluorescent isolectin conjugate, and blue are all nuclei stained with a DNR binding dye Hoechst33342. The small images below distinguish neurons from astrocytes that merge to orange structures when are localized close together. The cells form 3D spheroids on Ferentis collagen mimetic peptide (CMP) hydrogel that communicate with neurite fibers supported by co-localizedd astrocytes. The spherical bodies are actively shaped by microglia which are selectively removing synapses, neurites and entire neurons. This mimics the in vivo tissue formation process. The same cells make a more static monolayer on cell culture plastic surfaces with fewer neurites, decreased contacts between astrocytes and neurons, and visibly flattened microglia. Cells were visualized under a laser scanning microscope Zeiss Axio Observer LSM700.。

 

Cell Attachment

Primary neuronal-glial cells on collagen mimetic peptide (CMP, left image) and CMP with hyaluronic acid (HA), right, after 5 days in culture.

CMP induced spherical neuronal-astrocyte formation surrounded by microglia, and introduction of HA made cells adhere to the hydrogel surface. Phase contrast images made by Olympus IX71S1F-3 microscope.

 

Cell Proliferation

Human corneal epithelial cell (HCEC) attachment and proliferation on collagen mimetic peptide hydrogel.

Left image – 24h after plating, right image – after 5 days in vitro. The same cells did not attach to negative control samples made from PEG hydrogel. GFP-tagged cells were visualized by fluorescent microscope Zeiss AxioVert A1.

 

Neurite Outgrowth

 

Introduction of IKVAV peptide sequence from laminin into CMP structure induced significant neuritogenesis (left) compared to neurons on plastic surface (upper right) and porcine collagen (lower right).

Neurons are immunostained yellow for microtubule associated protein 2 and visualized under a laser scanning microscope Zeiss Axio Observer LSM700.