After a month of observation and some hands-on iPSC maintenance my training in reprogramming and stem cell culture is largely complete. I am still no iPSC ninja like Ash, but I have a good grasp on the basic processes involved. This means that we can now move forward with reprogramming my own blood cells.

The blood collection is set for the 7th April 2022. This will enable Ash to oversee the PBMC culture and transduction before he goes on holiday over the Easter Break. I will need to stick around, of course to maintain the cultures and wait for attachment (with help from the wonderful Dr Ariane Gelinas-Marion).

The basic schedule is outlined below:

Wednesday 6th April – Prep PBMC media
Thursday 7th April – Blood Collection and PBMC Isolation
Friday 8th April – PBMC media change
Sun 9th April  – PBMC media change and cell count
Mon 10th April – PBMC media change
Tuesday 12th April – Add virus – PBMC media
Wednesday 13th April – Transfer to Matrigel Plate with PBMC media
Thursday 14th April – PBMC Media top-up
Saturday 16th April – PBMC Media top-up
Monday 18th April – PBMC Media top-up
Wednesday 20th April – Check for attachment – if attached top-up with Reprogramming Media.
Friday 22nd April – Media Change
Sunday 24th April – Media Change