I-Corps: Naturally inspired approach to preserving cellular therapies

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is to provide a new platform for the cryopreservation of cellular therapies. This technology will allow for improved preservation of cells through the development of cell-type specific cryoprotective solutions and protocols that deliver high survival and function of cells after freezing and thawing. The cell therapy industry is a rapidly growing market that is expected to reach $8.21 billion by 2025. The proposed project will impact the cell therapy industry by improving quality of cells after freezing and thawing, extending the shelf life of these cells from hours or days to months or years, and alleviating processing bottlenecks associated with current preservation methods. This technology can be adapted for a variety of cell types, which may be administered to patients as cell therapies, used for research applications, or stored in biobanks. This I-Corps Teams project builds upon prior research in the development of cryoprotective solutions and protocols for a variety of cell types. The technology utilizes algorithm-driven optimization to create novel, nontoxic cryoprotective solutions inspired by how organisms survive freezing in nature. Proof-of-concept has been demonstrated with a cryoprotective solution and protocol optimized for the preservation of mesenchymal stem cells, which is currently undergoing beta testing at 8 sites. Additional technologies for other cell types are in progress. Development of this technology for specific markets requires a thorough understanding of customer needs. This I-Corps team project is aimed at identifying customer needs through customer discovery interviews, which will inform the development of new products in our pipeline to meet these specific needs.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.