Ham's F-12 Nutrient Mixture (F-12) was designed for serum-free single-cell plating of Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) cells. F-12 has since been used for serum-free growth of CHO cultures as well as serum-supplemented growth of other mammalian cells, including chondrocytes and rat prostate epithelial cells. Life Technologies offers a variety of Gibco® F-12 modifications for a range of cell culture applications. Find the right formulation using the media selector tool.
The complete formulation is available.

Compared to other basal media, F-12 contains a wider variety of components, including zinc, putrescine, hypoxanthine, and thymidine. Serum-free growth of CHO cells in F-12 has led to a variety of improved formulations.

Product Intended Use
For in vitro diagnostic use. CAUTION: Not for human or animal therapeutic use. Uses other than the intended use may be a violation of local law.

cGMP Manufacturing and Quality System
Gibco® F-12 is manufactured at a cGMP compliant facility, located in Paisley, Scotland, UK. The facility is registered with the FDA as a medical device manufacturer and is certified to the ISO 13485 standard. For supply chain continuity, Life Technologies offers a comparable Gibco® F-12 product made in our Grand Island, New York facility (21700-075). This facility is registered with the FDA as a medical device manufacturer and is certified to the ISO 13485 and ISO 9001 standards.

Gibco® F-12 contains no proteins or growth factors. Therefore, F-12 requires supplementation, commonly with 10% Fetal Bovine Serum (FBS). F-12 uses a sodium bicarbonate buffer system (1.176 g / L) and therefore requires a 5-10% CO₂ environment to maintain physiological pH. Powder forms of Gibco® cell culture medium require sodium bicarbonate supplementation at the time of preparation (see protocol for details).