Designed for mammalian and insect cell culture, superior to traditional shake flasks making shake cabinets a much more efficient space in the lab.
Optimum Growth® System
Shake Flasks
Designed for mammalian and insect cell culture, superior to traditional shake flasks making shake cabinets a much more efficient space in the lab.
Special Flasks
Thomson Optimum Growth® Special Flasks were designed with the unique needs of small-to-medium-scale bioprocessing applications
Transfer Caps
Eliminates intermediate vessels for scale up & seed cultures
Rapid Clear® Cap
Quickly and efficiently clarify cell culture media directly from the Thomson 5L Optimum Growth® shaker flask without the need for centrifugation
Optimum Growth® Flasks
Scalable from 125mL up to 5L
Thomson Optimum Growth® Flasks (patented) for mammalian and insect cell culture come in multiple sizes of 125mL, 250mL, 500mL, 1.6L, 2.8L and our popular 5L.They are superior to traditional shake flasks due in part to the fact that they support a 50-60% fill volume versus 33% fill volume making your shake cabinet a much more efficient space.
Baffles designed for high aeration and low shear to maintain cell viability
Same footprint as comparable Fernbach flask but with a 50-60% fill volume
Less foaming than disposable Fernbach potentially eliminates additives
0.2μm Vented Cap simultaneously maintains high gas exchange and sterility
Transfer cap option connects directly to cell bags or bioreactors with multiple connection options
Scalability from 125mL up to 5L lets you mix and match different flask sizes in your shaker greatly improving space efficiency
Individually packaged and sterilized for immediate use
All Sizes Shake At The SAME Optimal Shake Speed
Maximize Shaker Space Efficiency
Thomson Optimum Growth® Flasks in all sizes shaking at an optimal shake speed of 120 rpm on a 1" (2.54cm) throw shake platform.
Note: that virtually every square inch of platform space is utilized
Space Saving More Volume
Optimum Growth® Flasks give excellent growth with space saving capability.
See Optimum Growth® Accessories
Fill Volume & Shake Speeds
CHO Stable, & Transient, HEK293 Transient , Hybridoma
Recommended
Recommended fill volume & shake speeds for Optimum Growth® Flasks. To achieve the advertised results with our Optimum Growth® flasks it is recommended to follow these guidelines.
| Flask Size | Recommended Fill | Recommended RPM 1" (2.54cm) | 2" (5.08cm) |
|---|---|---|
| 125mL | 63mL | 150 | 110 |
| 250mL | 150mL | 150 | 110 |
| 500mL | 250mL | 150 | 110 |
| 1.6L | 900mL | 150 | 110 |
| 2.8L | 1.4L | 150 | 110 |
| 5L | 2.0L | 120 | 90 |
Working
Note: Although the following data guidelines will produce acceptable results, the advertised results for Optimum Growth® Flasks are achieved using the recommended fill volume & shake speeds.
| Flask Size | Working Volume | Working RPM Range 1" (2.54cm) | 2" (5.08cm) |
|---|---|---|
| 125mL | 24-75mL | 120-150 | 90-110 |
| 250mL | 100-150mL | 120-150 | 90-110 |
| 500mL | 175-250mL | 120-150 | 90-110 |
| 1.6L | 0.4-1.1L | 120-150 | 90-110 |
| 2.8L | 0.9-1.6L | 120-150 | 90-110 |
| 5L | 1.7-3.2L | 120-150 | 90-110 |
Insect Cell lines
Recommended
Recommended fill volume & shake speeds for Optimum Growth® Flasks. To achieve the advertised results with our Optimum Growth® flasks it is recommended to follow these guidelines.
| Flask Size | Recommended Fill | Recommended RPM 1" (2.54cm) | 2" (5.08cm) |
|---|---|---|
| 125mL | 63mL | 150 | 110 |
| 250mL | 150mL | 150 | 110 |
| 500mL | 250mL | 150 | 110 |
| 1.6L | 900mL | 150 | 110 |
| 2.8L | 1.4L | 150 | 110 |
| 5L | 2.0L | 135 | 95 |
Working
Note: Although the following data guidelines will produce acceptable results, the advertised results for Optimum Growth® Flasks are achieved using the recommended fill volume & shake speeds.
| Flask Size | Working Volume | Working RPM Range 1" (2.54cm) | 2" (5.08cm) |
|---|---|---|
| 125mL | 24-75mL | 120-150 | 90-110 |
| 250mL | 100-150mL | 120-150 | 90-110 |
| 500mL | 175-250mL | 120-150 | 90-110 |
| 1.6L | 0.4-1.1L | 120-150 | 90-110 |
| 2.8L | 0.9-1.6L | 120-150 | 90-110 |
| 5L | 1.7-3.2L | 120-140 | 90-110 |
Microbes / E. coli
Working
Note: For Microbes & E. coli cell growth we recommend using our Ultra Yield® Flask system of products. Presented here are the working fill volume & shake speeds.
| Flask Size | Working Volume | Working RPM Range 1" (2.54cm) | 2" (5.08cm) |
|---|---|---|
| 125mL | 63mL | 250 | 150 |
| 250mL | 125mL | 250 | 150 |
| 500mL | 250mL | 250 | 150 |
| 1.6L | 900mL | 250 | 150 |
| 2.8L | 1.4L | 250 | 150 |
| 5L | 2.5L | 250 | 150 |
Visit More of the Optimum Growth® System
Traditional vs Optimum Growth® Flasks
Comparison of Two Expressed Membrane Proteins
- Corning® - 500mL flask, 200mL culture
- Thomson - 250mL flask, 150mL culture
- 4mL samples purified over Ni-NTA
- Protein A - Membrane protein of moderate expression, 34kDa
- Protein B - Membrane protein of low expression, 45kDa
- 12μL of elution resolved on a coomassie gel
Conclusion: Thomson Optimum Growth® flasks are equivalent to Corning® standard flasks in terms of expressed protein purity but with a 50-60% fill volume Optimum Growth® flasks generate a far greater total yield/flask.
214% Yield Increase From Insect Cells
Protein Production/Flask
Data supplied by New York Structural Genomics Research Consortium
Consistent Expression From HEK293 Strains
Thomson 5L flasks consistently maximize production of your best expressers
4-20% SDS-PAGE Quick Blue Stain Commassie Gel Expected MW of dimer 24.5 kDa Estimated expression level ~10-20 mg/L
Low Expressing Gel
This gel shows equal bands from 5 replicates of a low expressing protein, producing roughly 10 to 20 mg/L.
Gel Key
- Benchmark Pre-Stained Protein Ladder
- Purified protein, 100 ng control
- Purified protein, 200ng control
- Untransfected cells, -ve control
- +ve control
- +ve control
- Protein of interest, 5L Combined Flasks #1-5
- Protein of interest, 5L Flask #1
- Protein of interest, 5L Flask #2
- Protein of interest, 5L Flask #3
- Protein of interest, 5L Flask #4
- Protein of interest, 5L Flask #5
4-20% SDS-PAGE Quick Blue Stain Commassie Gel Expected MW of dimer 159.4 kDa Estimated expression level ~300 mg/L
High Expressing Gel
This gel shows equal bands from 3 replicates of a high expressing protein, producing approximately 300 mg/L.
Gel Key
- Benchmark Pre-Stained Protein Ladder
- Purified mAb 100 ng control
- Purified mAb 250 ng control
- Purified mAb 500 ng control
- Purified mAb 1000 ng control
- +ve control
- Protein of interest, 5L Flask #1
- Protein of interest, 5L Flask #2
- Protein of interest, 5L Flask #3
- Protein of interest, 5L Combined Flasks #1-3
Conclusion
Thomson Optimum Growth® Flasks not only ensure consistent expression from HEK293 strains, they can also increase shaker capacity.
With the same footprint as a typical Corning® 3L flask and a culture volume of up to 3L, the Optimum Growth® 5L Flask may increase production 200%, if not more, in the same space (this is construct dependent).
Most constructs express at higher levels in the Optimum Growth® 5L flasks. This makes one Optimum Growth® 5L equivalent to, if not greater than, two 3L flasks.
Thomson Instrument Company is not affiliated with Corning® Life Sciences or their products
Flask Clamp Compatibility
Refer to the chart below to find the appropriate flask clamp compatible with your shaker.
| Flask Size | Eppendorf® | INFORS HT® | Kuhner® | Fisher Scientific® | VWR® |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 125mL | M1190-9001 | 12202 | SM310125 | 11-676-013 | 57019-676 |
| 250mL | M1190-9002 | 12203 | SM310250 | 11-676-014 | 57019-678 |
| 500mL | M1190-9003 | 12204 | SM310500 | 11-676-015 | 57019-682 |
| 1.6L | n/a | 12205 | SM311600 | n/a | n/a |
| 2.8L | ACE-2000S | 12251 | SM312800T | 11-676-018 | 57019-686 |
| 5L | ACE-5000S | 12209 | SM313000F | 236028 | 57019-696 |
Nationwide Technical Support
We're here to help!
Thomson employs a nationwide team of expert technical support staff ready to tackle any questions you may have regarding our products.