Papain, a proteolytic enzyme derived from the papaya fruit (Carica papaya latex), provides a gentle and efficient method for dissociating tissues into single cells, while preserving cell integrity and viability for downstream applications.

Advantages of Papain in Tissue Dissociation:

1. Broad Specificity and Versatility
   Papain exhibits broad substrate specificity, cleaving various peptide bonds in proteins found within the extracellular matrix and cell-cell adhesions. This versatility makes it suitable for dissociating tissues from a wide variety of species, including common models like rat, mouse, and human, as well as less common species such as shellfish, salamander, turtle, and insect.

2. Gentle Proteolysis
   Papain breaks down proteins in a mild and controlled manner, minimizing damage to cell membranes. This is particularly beneficial for isolating delicate cells, such as cortical neurons, retinal cells, and photoreceptors, or endocrine cells, which require gentle handling to maintain functionality.

3. High Cell Viability
   Papain’s gentle action ensures high cell viability, preserving isolated cells for downstream applications such as cell culture, flow cytometry, and molecular analyses.

4. High Efficiency
   Papain efficiently degrades extracellular matrix proteins, enabling the dissociation of tissues into single cells under near-physiological conditions. It is particularly effective for tissues that are challenging to dissociate or are available in limited quantities.

5. Consistency and Reproducibility
   Papain is available in standardized formulations (lyophilized or suspension), ensuring batch-to-batch consistency and reproducibility. Ready-to-use kits, optimized for isolating viable single cells from fetal and neonatal central nervous system tissues, further streamline the process based on well-established protocols.

Available Papain Products

• Lyophilized and Suspension: available in 25 mg, 100 mg and 1 g.
  • Papain Suspension, twice crystallized, 0,22 µm filtered
  • Papain Lyophilized Powder, twice crystallized
• Papain Dissociation System (PDS and PDS2 Kits):
  The PDS and PDS2 Kits ensure consistent, reliable results, saving time and effort in tissue dissociation. With its user-friendly protocols and high-quality components, these kits offer ready-to-use solutions for neural tissue dissociation. They are based on the method developed by Huettner and Baughman (J Neurosci. 1986;6(10):3044-3060), optimized to isolate high yields of viable, morphologically intact cortical neurons from postnatal rats. This technique has also been adapted for the dissociation of other brain regions, including the hippocampus, as well as various fetal and postnatal brain tissues.

Optimized Use and Combinations

While Papain is highly effective on its own, it can also be used in combination with other enzymes like Collagenase, Trypsin or Dispase, depending on experimental needs.

The Tissue Dissociation Guide is a comprehensive resource that details protocols and techniques for enzymatically dissociating tissues into single cells.

CellSystems can continue to offer and deliver cell culture products from our suppliers Advanced Biomatrix, Applied StemCell, and Lifeline Cell Technology to the UK.
These include

• Human Primary Cells (Keratinocytes, Endothelial Cells, Fibroblasts),
• specialized Cell Culture Media (e.g., VascuLife, DermaLife, FibroLife),
• Matrix Proteins (e.g., PureCol, Fibronectin, Rat Tail Collagen), and
• iPSC-derived Cells (e.g., iPSC-derived Microglia Cells, iPSC-derived Natural Killer Cells, iPSC-derived Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells).

Shipments to the UK are sent from our logistics center in Germany on Mondays and Tuesdays.
We have all the necessary approvals for the import of animal-derived products into the UK.

Dysbiotic Vaginal Complications: Insights from Human Vagina and Cervix Chips Co-culture

Researchers used Organ-on-a-Chip technology to investigate the impact of cervicovaginal mucus on dysbiotic vaginal conditions. The study, detailed in “Modulation of dysbiotic vaginal complications by cervical mucus revealed in linked human vagina and cervix chips by Gutzeit et al. (bioRxiv, 2023), highlights dysbiotic changes in the female genital microbiome and their links to various health issues. The study employed a microfluidic two-channel co-culture of a cervix chip and a vagina chip, revealing that cervical mucus collected from the cervix chip protected the vaginal epithelium on the vagina chip from inflammation and epithelial cell injury. Proteomic analysis identified potential diagnostic biomarkers or therapeutic targets for bacterial vaginosis. The research underscores the utility of organ chip technology in understanding female reproductive tract health and disease.

Notably, the wide range of cells, media, and coating reagents required for establishing the Organ Chips are available in Europe through CellSystems®:

Female Reproductive Cells

Extracellular Matrices

Adhesion Peptides

We significantly broadened the portfolio of human Mononuclear Cells (MNCs) and isolated hematopoietic cell types from

• Leukapheresed Peripheral Blood (Leukapheresed PB)
• Normal Peripheral Blood (Normal PB)
• Mobilized Peripheral Blood (Mobilized PB)
• Cord Blood
• Bone Marrow and
• Plasma.

We now offer specific subsets of T cells, B cells, NK cells and monocytes isolated by positive selection of target cells or by depletion of non-target cells. Furthermore, CD34⁺ Hematopoietic Stem Cells as well as the CD34^– cells (cell fraction depleted of CD34+ cells) are available from several sources, also as “matched sets” from the same donor.

Furthermore, we also offer a wide variety of cells differentiated from induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs). The ready-to-use hematopoietic iPSC-derived cells come with optimized medium for most reliable results.

Have a look on the table about available Hematopoietic Celltypes and Sources.

Click on the following links for a complete list of available human Primary Cells as well as ready-to-use iPSC-derived cells.

After a long time with very limited opportunities to meet our highly valued customers in person, we are now looking forward to meeting you again.
Come by our booth at
– 49. ADF-Tagung, 22 – 25 February 2023, Innsbruck, Austria
– 3D Cell Culture 2023, 17 – 19 April 2023, Freiburg, Germany
and don’t miss out on information about new and relevant products & services for your research area of interest.

We are hoping to see you there!

Your CellSystems Team