Systematic technology development of chemicals for freezing live blood

Important results from the project

The scientific and technical goals were met. With a calorimeter acquired via Vinnova, over 300 formulations were screened under varied freezing and thawing conditions. This produced a prototype reagent of seven co-optimised components, allowing whole blood storage at ≤ –80 °C and isolation of viable cells shortly after thawing, with viability above 70 %. An unplanned finding was a set of formulations that markedly preserve red blood cells. Commercialisation was not completed within the period.

Expected long term effects

Reliable whole blood cryopreservation removes a logistical constraint in clinical and multi-centre research, where samples must now be processed fresh and near the collection site. This makes large-scale, distributed studies more feasible, allows hard-to-reach cohorts to be included and improves comparability between sites. Compatibility with single-cell sequencing would extend these benefits to genomic research. The red blood cell findings may improve on current erythrocyte storage.

Approach and implementation

The project ran as sequential work packages: formulation screening, analytical characterisation, cell-based validation and commercialisation. Calorimetry characterised ice nucleation and glass transition, allowing a large formulation space to be narrowed efficiently; each screening round informed the next. Delayed instrument delivery, an unplanned laboratory move and technical problems shortened the effective project time, so commercialisation, the final package, could not be completed.