Maint. & Diff. of hPSCs Course-CA-Winter

STEMCELL Technologies hosts an intensive, hands-on training course in California for researchers who need to establish or refine their human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC) culture workflows. Delivered over five consecutive days during the winter session, the program combines instructor-led lectures, live demonstrations, and supervised bench time in a dedicated cell culture laboratory equipped with incubators set to 37 degrees C and 5% CO2.

Day-by-day modules begin with hPSC line thawing and feeder-free adaptation, then progress through routine enzymatic passaging using reagents such as ReLeSR, colony morphology scoring under the microscope, and cryopreservation of working and master cell banks. Quality control sessions cover mycoplasma testing, karyotype sampling at appropriate passage numbers, and flow cytometry-based pluripotency marker assessment using antibodies against OCT4, SSEA-4, and TRA-1-60.

The differentiation curriculum introduces participants to directed protocols for all three embryonic germ layers, including neural rosette induction, cardiac mesoderm specification, and definitive endoderm differentiation. Small group sizes, with fewer than 12 participants per cohort, allow one-on-one troubleshooting with senior trainers who bring experience from academic and industrial stem cell programs.

Targeted at graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and core facility staff, the course assumes familiarity with basic aseptic technique and is intended for in vitro research use only. Attendees receive a printed protocol manual, reagent ordering guide, and a certificate of completion at the end of the winter session.