Organ cryopreservation

Organ cryopreservation is the cryopreservation of animals or human organs, typically around -196 °C using liquid nitrogen. At this temperature, organs can be preserved for a long period, often more than a decade.^[1]

As of 2025^[update], organ cryopreservation remains experimental.^[2][3][4] Most organs are usually preserved at a temperature of just above 0°C, which allows them to be stored for a few hours to a few days. Certain organs may be preserved at temperatures between -20°C to -50°C, enabling storage for a few weeks to a few months. In 2023, researchers successfully cryopreserved rat kidneys at -196°C using liquid nitrogen for 100 days.^[5]

See also

• Cryopreservation
• Embryo cryopreservation
• Oocyte cryopreservation
• Ovarian tissue cryopreservation
• Semen cryopreservation
• Tissue cryopreservation

References

1. Chen, Jiangming; Liu, Xiangjian; Hu, Yuying; Chen, Xiaoxiao; Tan, Songwen (2023). "Cryopreservation of tissues and organs: present, bottlenecks, and future". Frontiers in Veterinary Science. 10 1201794. doi:10.3389/fvets.2023.1201794. PMC 10248239. PMID 37303729.
2. Ran, Qiulin; Zhang, Jiayi; Zhong, Jisheng; Lin, Ji; Zhang, Shuai; Li, Guang; You, Bin (26 March 2025). "Organ preservation: current limitations and optimization approaches". Frontiers in Medicine. 12 1566080. doi:10.3389/fmed.2025.1566080. PMC 11980443. PMID 40206471.
3. Khaydukova, Irina; Ivannikova, Valeria; Zhidkov, Dmitry; Belikov, Nikita; Peshkova, Maria; Timashev, Peter; Tsiganov, Dmitry; Pushkarev, Aleksandr (2024). "Current State and Challenges of Tissue and Organ Cryopreservation in Biobanking". International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 25 (20) 11124. doi:10.3390/ijms252011124. PMC 11508709. PMID 39456905.
4. Bakhach, Joseph (2009). "The cryopreservation of composite tissues". Organogenesis. 5 (3): 119–126. doi:10.4161/org.5.3.9583. PMC 2781091. PMID 20046674.
5. Han, Zonghu; Rao, Joseph; Gangwar, Lakshya; Namsrai, Bat; Allen, Jacqueline; Etheridge, Michael; Wolf, Susan; Pruett, Timothy; Bischof, John; Finger, Erik (2023). "Vitrification and nanowarming enable long-term organ cryopreservation and life-sustaining kidney transplantation in a rat model". Nature Communications. 14 (1) 3407. Bibcode:2023NatCo..14.3407H. doi:10.1038/s41467-023-38824-8. PMC 10256770. PMID 37296144.