Cultured meat is an emergent technology with the potential for significant environmental and animal welfare benefits. Accurate mimicry of traditional meat requires fat tissue; a key contributor to both the flavour and texture of meat. Here, we show that fibro-adipogenic progenitor cells (FAPs) are present in bovine muscle, and are transcriptionally and immunophenotypically distinct from satellite cells. These two cell types can be purified from a single muscle sample using a simple fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) strategy. FAPs demonstrate high levels of adipogenic potential, as measured by gene expression changes and lipid accumulation, and can be proliferated for a large number of population doublings, demonstrating their suitability for a scalable cultured meat production process. Crucially, FAPs reach a mature level of adipogenic differentiation in three-dimensional, edible hydrogels. The resultant tissue accurately mimics traditional beef fat in terms of lipid profile and taste, and FAPs thus represent a promising candidate cell type for the production of cultured fat.
Edible films for cultivated meat production
NingXianga1YaYaoa1John S.K.YuenJr.aAndrew J.StoutaColinFennellybRyanSylviabAlettaSchnitzlerbShouWongbDavid L.Kaplana aDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Tufts University, 4 Colby St., Medford, MA, USA, 02155 bMilliporeSigma, Inc., 400 Summit Drive, Burlington, MA, USA, 1803 Abstract Biomaterial scaffolds are critical components in...
