Which of the following device is used to culture large volumes of living cells to get products on large scale ?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Bioreactor
Option (1) PCR machine — Incorrect. PCR (polymerase chain reaction) makes many copies of a piece of DNA in a small tube. It does not grow cells, so it cannot give products from large volumes of culture.
Option (2) Agitator — Incorrect. An agitator is only the stirrer inside a bioreactor.
Option (3) Bioreactor — Correct. To produce a product in large quantities, the cells are grown in a bioreactor: a large vessel (100-1000 litres) that gives the best conditions of temperature, pH, oxygen and nutrients for growth.
Option (4) Assimilator — Incorrect. There is no such device in biotechnology.
NCERT Extract:
Obtaining the Foreign Gene Product – “… Small volume cultures cannot yield appreciable quantities of products. To produce in large quantities, the development of bioreactors, where large volumes (100-1000 litres) of culture can be processed, was required. Thus, bioreactors can be thought of as vessels in which raw materials are biologically converted into specific products, individual enzymes, etc., using microbial plant, animal or human cells.”