The global food industry is facing increased demand for foods such as meat and milk, resulting in greater environmental pressure due to intensive farming. In response to these challenges, a trend of developing in vitro production of meat and milk has emerged, based on tissue engineering. In the production of in vitro milk, key mammary epithelial cells (MECs) are obtained through tissue biopsies or from milk. These cells are intriguing as they are the only ones capable of producing all milk components (e.g., caseins, whey proteins, etc.). In the mammary gland, the expression of genes for producing different milk components is controlled by communication between signals from the basal membrane and the lactogenic hormone, prolactin. Therefore, to ensure MEC functionality in vitro, mimicking in vivo microenvironment is crucial using specific media (lactogenic media containing prolactin) and cultivating cells in three-dimensional cell cultures (hydrogels containing proteins like laminin and collagen). For mass production, bioreactors are necessary to provide suitable cell growth conditions and separate the culture medium from secreted milk components (e.g., bioreactors with porous fibers, continuous in vitro milk production with organoids). For in vitro meat production, mostly satellite stem cells are used, with limited proliferative capacity, necessitating solutions such as adjusting media to preserve stemness or establishing stable cell lines. With specific culture media composition, selected cells are prompted to proliferate in a controlled laboratory environment or bioreactor. Subsequently, by altering the culture media composition and interactions with scaffolds, the initial cells differentiate into specific cell types, such as muscle fibers and adipocytes. The final step in in vitro meat production involves shaping the obtained tissues into structured products (e.g., steaks) or unstructured products (e.g., ground meat). Despite progress in this field, numerous technical challenges remain, including increasing production, improving taste and texture, and reducing production costs. This thesis aims to present the possibilities and challenges faced by tissue engineering in the production of in vitro foods and the development of technologies for creating such foods in the future.
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