Pivoting pressurized single use bioreactor

Abstract

Pressurized hermetically sealed bags disposed inside a cylindrical support and containing a septum with variable density of porosity and dividing the bag into two chambers are used to provide optimal mixing and gasification of nutrient media to grow a variety of biological cultures, particularly the cell cultures to produce a multitude of pharmaceutical and biotechnology products in a disposable system.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A mixing device comprising:
 a) a cylindrical support with an inner surface configured to immovably retain a single-use flexible container;   b) a single-use flexible container capable of containing a liquid comprising:
 i) A flexible septum with an inner surface immovably positioned within the flexible container and defining a right chamber and a left chamber, the septum comprising a plurality of pores with a variable density over the surface of the septum; 
 ii) At least one liquid inlet; 
 iii) At least one liquid outlet; 
 iv) At least one gas inlet in fluid communication with a source of compressed gas; 
 v) At least one gas outlet capable of controlling the rate of flow of gas; 
 vi) at least one sensor to measure the temperature of a liquid in the flexible container; and 
 vii) A heater and/or a cooling element for controlling the temperature of the flexible container; 
   c) a shaft for pivoting the cylindrical support along its circular axis between −110 to +110 degrees;   
       and wherein, the flexible container is immovably fixed to the inner surface of the cylindrical support. 
     
     
         2 . The mixing device of  claim 1 , wherein the pore size of the plurality of pores in the porous septum ranges 1 μm to 10,000 μm. 
     
     
         3 . The mixing device of  claim 1 , wherein the pore size of the plurality of pores in the porous septum ranges 100 μm to 10,000 μm. 
     
     
         4 . The mixing device of  claim 1 , wherein the surface of the flexible septum comprises 3-5 times higher density of pores along the middle of the horizontal axis. 
     
     
         5 . The mixing device of  claim 1 , further comprising a liquid wherein the liquid is comprised of a mixture of a plurality of liquids, a mixture of a plurality of liquids and a plurality of gases or a mixture of a plurality of solids and a plurality of liquids. 
     
     
         6 . The mixing device according to  claim 1 , wherein the flexible container is substantially cylindrical, ovoid, cuboid, round, rectangular or square in shape. 
     
     
         7 . The mixing device according to  claim 1 , wherein the flexible container is a flexible bag, and wherein the internal portion of the flexible container is comprised of a biocompatible material. 
     
     
         8 . The mixing device according to  claim 1 , further comprising a sensor capable of measuring the pressure inside the flexible container. 
     
     
         9 . The mixing device of  claim 1 , further comprising a controller capable of controlling the frequency and the degree of pivoting of the cylinder, and the temperature of a liquid in the flexible container. 
     
     
         10 . The mixing device of  claim 8 , further comprising a controller capable of controlling the pressure inside the flexible container.