Purchase of MVE Fusion Self-Sustaining Cryogenic Freezers

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Project Summary The goal of this request is to install two innovative Chart MVE Fusion 1500 self-sustaining Cryogenic freezers for -150oC to -190oC temperature long-term storage by creating a shared new cryofreezer farm which will expand the Institute’s cryostorage capabilities. The new cryofeezer farm will support 35 active research labs and core facilities as well as storage of research samples with intellectual property value. As additional freezers cannot be added to the current farm facility due to space constrains and renovations cannot be attempted to expand the footprint of the existing farm, creation of a new cryofreezer farm is critical for Wistar researchers to expand their current usage to support 92 NIH-funded projects and pursue new directions of research and discovery. Two cutting-edge, stand-alone, self-sustaining cryofreezers will enable creation of a new, added cryofreezer farm within the tower basement of the Institute (room B02) and without a need for pipelines providing exogenous replacement of liquid nitrogen. Notably, Chart MVE Fusion self-sustaining freezers utilize innovative Qdrive cryocooling technology to operate on only 50 liters of liquid nitrogen and run solely on electricity after initial liquid nitrogen fill, thus not requiring added replacement of liquid nitrogen. The Chart MVE Fusion 1500 cryogenic Freezer is the world’s first cryofreezer to use patented Qdrive Cryo-cooler technology to remove heat from and reuse existing supplied liquid nitrogen to maintain freezer temperature. By contrast, traditional vapor phase cryofreezers require 80 liters of liquid nitrogen for initial fill and then subsequent daily routine filling to compensate for liquid nitrogen loss due to usage and evaporation. The requested MVE Fusion 1500 cryofreezers will address two scientific needs at the same time: (a) the expansion of cryostorage capabilities with 72 additional storage racks to keep pace with Institute growth, and (b) establish cyofreezer units in a new location without the need to provide constant liquid nitrogen supply as the Institute transitions towards self-sustaining green technology. We will address these needs by implementing a specific aim to install two Chart MVE Fusion 1500 self-sustaining cryofreezers and create a shared satellite cryofreezer farm at The Wistar Institute. The new MVE Fusion cryofreezers will be managed by Wistar’s Department of Operations and overseen by Dr. Luis Montaner, Vice President of Scientific Operations and Associate Director for Shared Resources, on behalf of the faculty at the Wistar Institute. The Wistar Institute is the nation’s oldest independent biomedical research institute, with an energized and highly collaborative faculty who perform cutting-edge research on cancer biology, immunology and vaccines. The Institute boasts a long history of research success in monoclonal antibody therapy and cancer biology (Stelara®) and vaccines (RotaTeq©), including the second COVID-19 vaccine to move into clinical testing in the United States.