The Biopreservation Group is developing novel preservation technologies for cells and tissues.

The ability to preserve and bank biological entities is critical for scientific and medical applications. We are developing novel preservation technologies for cells and tissue to support the fundamental and practical issues associated with the translation of cell-based and tissue engineering technologies from bench-to bedside.

Our three primary focus areas in biopreservation research are anhydropreservation, cryopreservation by vitrification, and supercooling to sub zero temperature. For these techniques, we are using novel protective strategies to ensure survival in a desiccated, frozen or supercooled state.

Current research projects include:

  • Stabilization of mammalian cells at non-cryogenic temperatures in desiccated state
  • Development of novel dry-processing techniques for anhydropreservation of cells
  • Understanding the bioenergetic, metabolic and transcriptional responses to cryopreservation
  • Development of novel microfluidic techniques to preserve rare cells
  • Preservation of sperm and oocytes
  • Supercooling tissues and organs (liver, heart)

Affiliated Faculty
Representative Publications
  1. Liu, Jie, Gloria Y. Lee, Joel A. Lawitts, Mehmet Toner, and John D. Biggers. "Preservation of mouse sperm by convective drying and storing in 3-O-methyl-D-glucose." PloS one 7, no. 1 (2012): e29924.
  2. Li, Shumin, Nilay Chakraborty, Apurva Borcar, Michael A. Menze, Mehmet Toner, and Steven C. Hand. "Late embryogenesis abundant proteins protect human hepatoma cells during acute desiccation." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109, no. 51 (2012): 20859-20864.
  3. Usta, O. Berk, Yeonhee Kim, Sinan Ozer, Bote G. Bruinsma, Jungwoo Lee, Esin Demir, Tim A. Berendsen, Catheleyne F. Puts, Maria-Louisa Izamis, Korkut Uygun, Basak E. Uygun, and Martin L. Yarmush. "Supercooling as a viable non-freezing cell preservation method of rat hepatocytes." PloS one 8, no. 7 (2013): e69334.
  4. Liu, Jie, Gloria Y. Lee, Joel A. Lawitts, Mehmet Toner, and John D. Biggers. "Live Pups from Evaporatively Dried Mouse Sperm Stored at Ambient Temperature for up to 2 Years." (2014): e99809.
  5. Abazari, Alireza, Nilay Chakraborty, Steven Hand, Alptekin Aksan, and Mehmet Toner. "A Raman Microspectroscopy Study of Water and Trehalose in Spin-Dried Cells." Biophysical journal 107, no. 10 (2014): 2253-2262.
  6. Abazari, Alireza, Steven Hand, Alptekin Aksan, and Mehmet Toner. "C-37: Measurement of intracellular water and trehalose in desiccated cells."Cryobiology 69, no. 3 (2014): 511.
  7. Berendsen, Tim A., Bote G. Bruinsma, Catheleyne F. Puts, Nima Saeidi, O. Berk Usta, Basak E. Uygun, Maria-Louisa Izamis, Mehmet Toner, Martin L. Yarmush, and Korkut Uygun. "Supercooling enables long-term transplantation survival following 4 days of liver preservation." Nature medicine (2014).
  8. Heo, Yun Seok, Sunitha Nagrath, Alessandra L. Moore, Mahnaz Zeinali, Daniel Irimia, Shannon L. Stott, Thomas L. Toth, and Mehmet Toner. "Universal vitrification of cells by ultra-fast cooling." Technology 3, no. 01 (2015): 64-71.