School of Biotechnology · Cell & tissue culture
Animal Cell Culture Techniques
Cell culture underpins drug screening, cell biology and biomanufacturing, and it punishes poor technique. This course builds reliable, aseptic culture habits through daily hands-on work with established cell lines.
Course overview
Animal Cell Culture Techniques covers the cell-culture laboratory, media and supplements, and the routine operations that every culture scientist performs: thawing, feeding, passaging adherent cells, counting with a haemocytometer, measuring viability and cryopreserving stocks.
Contamination is a constant theme: recognising bacterial, fungal and mycoplasma contamination, preventing cross-contamination between lines, and the authentication and documentation practices that keep results reproducible.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course you will be able to:
- Work aseptically in a biosafety cabinet and maintain a clean culture area
- Prepare media and thaw, feed and passage adherent cell lines
- Count cells and measure viability by trypan-blue exclusion
- Cryopreserve and recover cell stocks
- Recognise, prevent and document contamination
Skills you will practise
Eligibility and prerequisites
Who can apply
- Students and graduates of B.Sc., M.Sc., B.Tech., M.Tech., B.Pharm., M.Pharm. or a PhD programme in biotechnology, microbiology, biochemistry, molecular biology, genetics, life sciences, pharmacy or allied health sciences
- Laboratory staff, research assistants and faculty who want structured bench training
- Participants must be 18 or older and follow the laboratory safety induction on day one
Prerequisites
- Undergraduate cell biology
- Essential Laboratory Skills recommended
Best suited to
- Students of biotechnology, life sciences, pharmacy and biomedical sciences
- Researchers starting cell-based experiments
- Laboratory staff in cell-biology and bioprocess labs
Module-wise syllabus
5 modules, each with a bench practical performed by every participant.
Topics
- Biosafety cabinets and incubators
- Media, serum and supplements
- Cell-line sourcing and authentication
Topics
- Thawing and recovery
- Feeding and observing morphology
- Confluence
Topics
- Trypsinisation and split ratios
- Haemocytometer counting
- Viability by trypan blue
Topics
- Freezing media and cryoprotectants
- Controlled-rate freezing
- Cell banking
Topics
- Recognising contamination
- Mycoplasma testing concepts
- Culture records
Practical sessions and projects
Practical assessment
Practical assessment
Maintain a culture independently for the week, with passaging, counting and cryopreservation records assessed for technique and documentation.
Assessed on technique, accuracy, safety and the laboratory record. A pass is required for the certificate.
- The culture laboratory
Set up and decontaminate a workstation and prepare complete medium.
- Routine culture
Thaw a cell line, monitor its recovery and record morphology daily.
- Passaging and counting
Passage adherent cells and count them with viability.
- Cryopreservation
Freeze a cell bank and recover a vial to check viability.
- Contamination and documentation
Inspect contaminated reference cultures and complete a culture record and contamination log.
Instruments, techniques and materials
Instruments and equipment
Techniques you will perform
- Aseptic technique
- Thawing and feeding
- Trypsinisation and passaging
- Haemocytometer counting
- Trypan-blue viability
- Cryopreservation
Materials
- Established, non-hazardous mammalian cell lines
- Culture media and supplements
- Sterile plasticware
Core reading
- Capes-Davis A, Freshney RI. Freshney’s Culture of Animal Cells: A Manual of Basic Technique and Specialized Applications, 8th edition. Wiley-Blackwell, 2021.
- Geraghty RJ et al. (2014). Guidelines for the use of cell lines in biomedical research. British Journal of Cancer 111:1021–1046.
Duration, format and fees
- Next cohort
- Dates are sent with your admission offer
- Timetable
- Weekdays, 9:30 to 16:30, at our laboratory
- Payment
- Secure online payment link with your admission offer (UPI, cards, net banking). Instalments on request for fees above ₹15,000.
- Refunds
- See the refund and cancellation policy.
Instructor
The instructor for each cohort is named in your admission offer and on this page when the cohort is announced. Vedicgen instructors are selected for hands-on laboratory experience in the subject they teach, and every course is reviewed by a second subject expert.
Questions about who teaches a cohort? [email protected]
Certificate
Learners who complete the course and pass its practical assessment receive a Vedicgen certificate of completion for Animal Cell Culture Techniques, issued by Vivofold, stating the bench hours and techniques performed. Each certificate has a unique ID and QR code that anyone can check.
Apply for Animal Cell Culture Techniques
Apply
Send the form below. It takes about five minutes.
Review
An adviser confirms your fit and format within two working days.
Offer
You receive dates, timetable and a secure payment link.
Onboard
Safety briefing, lab address and joining instructions.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Day one starts with a safety induction covering personal protective equipment, safe handling of reagents and biological material, spill response and waste segregation. All practicals use non-pathogenic material (Risk Group 1 organisms, established cell lines or synthetic templates) and are supervised throughout.
All reagents, kits, consumables, personal protective equipment, the lab manual and the certificate. Travel, accommodation and meals are not included. The laboratory address and joining instructions are sent with your admission letter.
Bench courses run in small groups so that every participant performs every practical personally, with an instructor-to-participant ratio that allows close supervision at the bench.
Yes. Learners who complete the course and pass its assessment receive a Vedicgen certificate of completion, issued by Vivofold. Every certificate carries a unique ID and a QR code that anyone, including an employer or admissions office, can check on the certificate verification page.
Apply with the form on this page. Live and in-person cohorts run through the year; the dates, timetable and joining details of the next cohort are sent with your admission offer and listed on this page once announced. Self-paced enrolment opens as soon as your application is accepted.
Yes. No course runs longer than four weeks, and the length is customisable: choose the standard schedule, an intensive one- to two-week schedule, weekends only, or a custom timetable. Pick your preference on the application form; colleges and teams can book their own dates.
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