Roswell Park Memorial Institute medium, commonly referred to as RPMI medium, is a form of medium used in cell culture and tissue culture. It has traditionally been used for growth of human lymphoid cells. This medium contains a great deal of phosphate and is formulated for use in a 5% carbon dioxide atmosphere. RPMI 1640 has traditionally been used for the serum-free expansion of human lymphoid cells.
RPMI 1640 uses a bicarbonate buffering system and differs from most mammalian cell culture media in its typical pH 8 formulation.
Properly supplemented with serum or an adequate serum replacement, RPMI 1640 allows the cultivation of many cell types, especially human T/B-lymphocytes, bone marrow cells and hybridoma cells.
There are a variety of similar media in the RPMI series, such as RPMI 1640.
The original RPMI-1640 formulation published by
list of ingredients in 1640 :