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Search below to delve into the Bitesize Bio archive. Here, you’ll find over two decades of the best articles, live events, podcasts, and resources, created by real experts and passionate mentors, to help you improve as a bioscientist. Whether you’re looking to learn something new or dig deep into a topic, you’ll find trustworthy, human-crafted content that’s ready to inspire and guide you.
Stem cell differentiation is central to disease modelling, drug discovery, and developmental research. Learn how differentiation works, how to choose the right culture system, support your cells through lineage commitment, and confirm that differentiation has succeeded. We’ll cover key considerations for different models and downstream applications.
You’ve moved your cells into serum-free medium…and they look sparse and sad. Whatever pushed you to drop fetal bovine serum the temptation now is to blame the medium and start reformulating. But before you spend any more of your precious grant money, read this article.
If your drug discovery research keeps failing human trials, the issue may be your hypothesis. These questions will help you design a more clinically relevant study before running it. Drawing from my experience in optometry, basic research, and clinical work focused on infectious keratitis, I’ll share how you can make your research more translational.
Before running MDCK transport assays, don’t rely on visual confluency alone. A monolayer may look ready but still be leaky, leading to misleading permeability data. Validate MDCK monolayer integrity first, using TEER to assess electrical resistance and lucifer yellow passage to detect leakage between cells. Together, these checks help confirm whether each well is suitable for transport measurements before you invest time and valuable compounds in the assay.
Effective iPSC culture depends on four essentials: choosing the right substrate, handling cells gently, limiting spontaneous differentiation, and maintaining strict quality control. Match substrate to endpoint, minimize temperature shifts and mechanical stress, remove differentiated cells to preserve purity, and run regular QC to confirm pluripotency and genomic stability. Consistent practice improves survival and reliable differentiation outcomes.
Murine bone marrow derived dendritic cells (BMDCs) are one of the easiest primary cell cultures to generate. The beauty lies in the fact that in the end you have a large quantity of robust DCs that can be matured and used to study a variety of DC functions and DC-T-cell interactions. But there are a…
Machine learning is making a massive impact on the life sciences and can now help deliver fast and accurate automatic hepatocyte counts. This article explains hepatocyte counting methods, from manual counting to the latest AI-assisted techniques.
Agar plates are the foundation of many experiments. Make sure your plates are perfect every time with these 8 tips and start your experiment ready for success!
We must preserve microorganisms for research continuity and to prevent frustrating delays. Here are several reliable ways to do it.
Learn the basics of how to passage cells in culture with this easy-to-follow guide. While the specifics change per cell line, the basics remain.
Biosafety cabinets keep your work safe from contamination, and you safe from your work. So here are 12 tips for Working in a biosafety cabinet!
Do you know what each ingredient in cell culture media does? Read on to take a look at the common ingredients and break down their roles.
Not sure what we mean by cell passage number? Confused about how to calculate it? Wondering if there is a maximum number? We explain it all.
Want to use a cell line but not sure where to start? Or perhaps you’re just curious about the most commonly used cell lines. Our top 5 most commonly used cell lines will help you get a feel for the cells that many researchers turn to.
While using serum in cell culture can keep your cells healthy and happy, there are some notable downsides. We discuss the pros and cons of using serum in cell culture media and how to remove it if you want to eliminate it from your workflow.
Cell confluency can affect cell behavior and growth. Find out what confluency is, how to measure it, and why it is a crucial consideration for your experiments.
HEK293 cells are one of the most commonly used cell lines. But what are they? Why should you use them? And what does the ‘293’ mean?
How do you know when your bacterial culture is “done” growing? Read on to learn how to monitor bacterial growth using OD600 measurements, and how to figure out when you should harvest your culture.
Are you finding the variety of available yeast media overwhelming? Read our guide to understand what’s in each and which is right for your fungus.
A Hemocytometer is a precision tool used to count cells and determine cell concentration in suspensions. This manual method is essential for tasks like seeding, passaging, and viability assessment. Proper sample preparation, counting technique, and calculation ensure accurate results. The guide covers protocols, a calculator, troubleshooting tips, and common errors to improve reliability in cell counting for bioscience applications.
Cryopreservation is crucial to the long-term maintenance of cells, so it’s important that you’re clued up on your freeze–thaw cycles. Check out our top tips for freezing and thawing cells.
Need a crash course in microbial identification methods? Here we give you a rundown of the methods available for the identification of bacteria, yeast, or filamentous fungi to the species level.
If you are interested in the sensory or motor function of your zebrafish model, this is the test to try.
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket! Learn how to handle your eggs, prevent contamination and keep track of your experiments when performing the CAM assay.
Are you studying angiogenesis? Is cell culture not cutting it but you’re not ready for an in vivo model? Check out the CAM assay.
Tips and tricks to get the most optimum and consistent results in a DSS-induced colitis model
Are you an immunologist or lab personnel dealing with counting tons of cells? Then you must have come across the elusive Coulter Counter! Read on to know a little history ofthe instrument’s technology and its working principle.
Feeder cells – your solution to difficult-to-grow cell problems. Find out what they are, why to use them, and how.
Working with mice doesn’t have to be intimidating. Read these tips to help keep your mouse-based experiments running smoothly.
Are you struggling to answer your research question using established models? Consider going rogue and switching to a non-model organism!
Yes, you can infect your eukaryotic cells with bacteria on purpose! Find out why and how in this article that lists steps for successful and productive infections.
If you’re confused about what N numbers mean for cell lines, you’re not alone. We explain it all and give you a guide on best practice.
When microinjecting zebrafish, time is of the essence. Read these tips and tricks on how to prepare ahead of time and ensure a successful microinjection.
There’s no need to shop till you drop. Our guide to where to get your next cell line from takes the stress out of cell line shopping.
We are all familiar with bacterial cell lines as a means for protein expression and purification. But can you do the same with eukaryotic cell lines? Read on to learn some helpful tips and considerations when needing to get your hands on some eukaryotic protein.
There is an overwhelming selection of cell lines available, make sure you pick the right one for your work using our tips.
Now that you’ve chosen your perfect primary Schwann cell line, it’s time to culture! Read on to learn how to do so with ease.
Have you been itching to branch into working with Schwann cells for your next experiment, but aren’t quite sure where to begin? This article will help you decide which primary Schwann cell line is best for your needs.
During my first year of graduate school, I learned how to isolate bone marrow. I remember watching my mentor in awe, wondering how would I be able to do such a difficult technique. Flash forward to a few weeks later and I was confidently undertaking bone marrow isolation. Learning a new technique is always daunting,…
Macrophages are a type of white blood cell derived from monocytes that are most widely known for the ability to phagocytose cell debris, pathogens, and even cancer cells. However, it is becoming clear that the role of macrophages goes beyond eliminating cellular waste. Macrophages are often used in conjunction with T cells to measure immune…
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