Cell carriers and methods for culturing cells

1. A carrier for growing stem cells, wherein the carrier is configured to be held in a suspended state in a solution in a bioreactor, and wherein the carrier is configured to protect the stem cells from exposure to hydrodynamic shear generated by a fluid motion in the bioreactor, comprising:

a substrate comprising two outer surfaces, wherein one or more structured indentations are present on the two outer surfaces of the substrate; and

a hydrophilic, water soluble coating material disposed and dried on the two outer surfaces,

wherein the carrier has a length from about 0.2 mm to about 25 mm, a width of from about 0.2 mm to about 25 mm, and a height in a range from about 0.5 mm to about 1.2 mm, and wherein each of the structured indentations has a major axis in a range from about 0.1 mm to about 0.5 mm, a minor axis in a range from about 0.1 mm to about 0.5 mm, a depth in a range from about 0.025 mm to about 0.5 mm, and an aspect ratio in a range from about 0.1 to about 1.5, and

wherein the coating material comprises a sodium chloride, and the concentration of sodium chloride is in a range from about 0.01% to about 3% by mass with respect to a mass of the carrier.

2. The carrier of claim 1 , wherein each of the structured indentations comprises a cross sectional profile of a polygonal shape, a circular shape, or an elliptical shape.

3. The carrier of claim 1 , wherein the carrier is made of a glass, a polymer, a ceramic, a metal, or combinations thereof.

4. The carrier of claim 1 , wherein the carrier is made of dextran, silicone, polyester, polycarbonate, polyamide, polyurethane, olefin polymer, or polyacrylate polymer.

5. The carrier of claim 1 , wherein the carrier is made of polystyrene.

6. The carrier of claim 1 , wherein the carrier comprises a perimeter that is triangular, rectangular, square, pentagonal, hexagonal, circular, or elliptical.

7. The carrier of claim 1 , wherein the two outer surfaces of the substrate are plasma treated.

8. A cell culture system comprising at least one carrier of claim 1 .

9. The cell culture system of claim 8 , wherein the cell culture system is a bioreactor.

10. The cell culture system of claim 9 , wherein the bioreactor comprises a fluid having a forced convective fluid motion.

11. The cell culture system of claim 9 , wherein the bioreactor is a stirred tank bioreactor, or a reactor with a rocking or rolling motion.

12. A kit for culturing cells, comprising a disposable housing pre-loaded with the carrier of claim 1 .

13. The kit of claim 12 , wherein the disposable housing is a bag, a flask, a tube, a petri dish, or a bottle.

14. The carrier of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the two outer surfaces of the substrate is modified with a gas plasma treatment comprising oxygen, nitrogen, nitrous oxide, ammonia, carbon dioxide, or combinations thereof prior to deposition of the hydrophilic, water soluble coating material.

15. The carrier of claim 1 , wherein the carrier further comprises a macromolecular coating on the two outer surfaces of the substrate.

16. The carrier of claim 1 , wherein the length is in a range from about 0.2 mm to about 6.5 mm, the width is in a range from about 0.2 mm to about 6.5 mm and the height is about 0.5 mm.

17. The carrier of claim 16 , wherein the carrier has a length of about 6.5 mm, a width of about 6.5 mm and a height of about 0.5 mm.

18. The carrier of claim 1 , wherein the length is in a range from about 0.2 mm to about 6.5 mm, the width is in a range from about 0.2 mm to about 6.5 mm and the height is in a range from about 1 mm to about 10 mm.