Toward cultivated meat production: Biocompatibility analysis of propylene glycol-based cryopreservation solution solely prepared using food and food additives

To ensure the safety of cell-based foods, it is important to use only food and food additives and to comply with the standards for their use. In this study, a commercial cryopreservation solution was customized to contain only food and food additives consisting of saline, sugar, and 10 % (v/v) propylene glycol. In Japan, the upper limit for the use of PG is set at 0.60 % (w/w) in general foods. When 1 mL of cells cryopreserved in the customized solution was washed with 45 mL of culture medium, the PG content in the cells was less than 0.30 % (w/w), well below the regulation value. The viability (> 90 %), proliferation, and differentiation of cells recovered after 6 months of cryopreservation, both bovine satellite cells and adipose-derived stem cells, were sufficient and comparable to those of the original commercial solution. This study provides useful information toward cultivated meat production.