Umbilical cord blood cryopreservation

Stem cell therapy involves infusion of specialized cells utilized to perform specific functions. The traditional use of cell therapy includes harvest and cryopreservation of autologous hematopoietic cells either from the bone marrow (old approach) or mobilization and pheresis of hematopoietic stem cells from peripheral blood using stem cell-mobilizing cytokines such as hematopoietic colony-stimulating factors (G-CSF, GM-CSF) or chemokine inhibitors (AMD-3100). A more recent stem cell source is umbilical cord blood that has rich pleuripotent potential and can engraft at lower doses than bone marrow or mobilized peripheral blood stem cells. 

Once it is possible to expand a clinically defined and safe cell lineage for transplant, it is also necessary to be able to store the viable cells for subsequent attempts or procedures. This can avoid further surgery on the same patient. This demands the development of crypreservation methods for cells and tissues, involving a tissue bank (blood, skin, bones, cornea, bone marrow, umbilical cord blood, etc.). Cryopreservation must be efficient for long periods of storage, since the frozen cells may be required years after the initial deposit. 

Wang HY, Lun ZR, Lu SS. Cryopreservation of umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells without dimethyl sulfoxide. CryoLetters 201 l 32(l) 81-8. 

Chua, K. N., C. Chai, P. C. Lee et al. 2007. Functional nanofiber scaffolds with different spacers modulate adhesion and expansion of cryopreserved umbilical cord blood hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells. Exp Hematol 35(5) 771-81. 

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