Latest news with #cryopreservation
News.com.au
a day ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Dr Boreham's Crucible: Cryopreserver Vitrafy aims to heat up, even as it chills
For Vitrafy Life Sciences (ASX:VFY) chief Kate Munnings, two isolated local controversies are testament to how the recently listed cryopreservation outfit's technology can be put to good use. 'With every problem there's an opportunity,' she says. The first incident was Monash IVF's mishandling of biological samples that led to a mother being implanted with the wrong embryo. The second is the ongoing disquiet about the environmental impact of intensive salmon farming in Tasmania, which emerged as a key issue in the recent Federal election. Munnings reckons Vitrafy can ameliorate both problems. In the case of fish, it's better husbandry practices to make the industry more sustainable. 'We are looking at how we craft what we offer to that market as an opportunity to help with challenges they have experienced,' she says. In the case of the human biological samples, it's better freezing via Vitrafy's device and better tracking via its Lifechain internet cloud-based software. 'As a result of the embryo mix up, we have started conversations in the IVF sector about how Lifechain, with its quality and tracking and monitoring of biologic material, could be utilised,' she says. Plating up a new company There's seemingly little correlation between a cooking show and cryopreservation, but Vitrafy owes its existence to the culinary reality television show Masterchef. Vitrafy was co-founded by amateur chef Brent Owens, who won the cook-off in 2014. The victory sparked Owens' interest in food cryopreservation and a wider interest in the art of deep freezing – all self-taught. 'The idea was that if you could cryopreserve an egg, you could cryopreserve anything,' he said. Owens founded Vitrafy with Brian Taylor and Sean Cameron in 2017, with an initial interest in consumer applications, notably food (their backgrounds are in consumables export and manufacturing). The trio soon shifted their interest to human health (such as artificial insemination, blood products and cell gene therapy) and animal applications. Munnings headed the formerly ASX listed, now privatised, in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) house Virtus Health from March 2020 to November 2023. Munnings is also a non-executive director of Bunnings parent company Wesfarmers and the New Zealand-listed aged-care operator Ryman Healthcare. A Vitrafy non-executive director, Prof John McBain needs no introduction, having founded Melbourne IVF. Vitrafy listed on the ASX on November 27 2024, after a $35 million capital raising at $1.84 a share. Vitrafy's 'secret sauce' Vitrafy's products consist of freezing, thawing and packaging devices, overlaid by the Lifechain algorithm-based monitoring software. Cryopreservation has been around at least since 1966, when the deceased Walt Disney was rumoured to be (although repeatedly denied by his family) immersed in a vat for future revival. Vitrafy's technology is based on the principles of heat transfer, thermo-dynamics and fluid dynamics to remove heat from a sample 'in a controlled and consistent way at various temperatures and speeds'. The result is that freezing and thawing take minutes, rather than hours, thus reducing the risk of the specimens degrading. In the US, the company says, 20% of blood platelet samples need to be thrown out because of inadequate cryopreservation, at a cost to the health sector of US$280 million. Have you noted that, DOGE? Different types of samples require different freezing temperatures and durations. Vitrafy's 'secret sauce' is to be able to adapt the conditions to suit the sample. Last year the US Food and Drug Administration approved Vitrafy for sperm, ova and blood product applications, under a fast-track predicate device path. We came, we thawed, we conquered Vitrafy's US efforts centre on a collaboration with the US Army Institute of Surgical Research, which carried out a phase I study on blood platelet preservation. The project aims to improve the shelf-life of emergency blood platelets, which is relevant for the battlefield. Completed in April, the study reported platelet recovery of 88%, well above the desired threshold and without the need for cryoprotectants (see below). Post-thaw, the study analysed 24 units from eight healthy donors. The parties are moving to the next stage of the study, which in part involves higher throughput and is expected to complete by the end of the year. In the US, Vitrafy has also held discussions with the Red Cross and Blood Centres of America, a collective of independent biobanks. Fishy business Munnings says the salmon industry has a growing interest in artificial insemination, to improve hatchery and harvest management and thus address the over-fishing allegations. Following pilot testing, Vitrafy has signed a three-year commercial contract with Tasmanian salmon producer Huon Aquaculture to freeze and thaw brood stock sperm. In Huon's summer fertilisation program, Vitrafy's process of fertilising fresh salmon milt from vitrified material was compared to a rival's method. The result was a 72% fertilisation rate with Vitrafy's method, compared with 75% for fresh milt and 45% for rival techniques. The company has preserved a minimum 750 packs of salmon milt, representing 55% growth over three years (albeit from a low base). Vitrafy is carrying out a paid pilot program with Tassal, another major salmon producer. Holy cow! That's an improvement Vitrafy has a contract with the Ohio-based Select Sires, which accounts for 25% of the US bovine reproduction market. Cattle make up 40% of the US$5 billion-a-year global animal artificial insemination sector. Comparing Vitrafy's process to Select Sires' protocols, a phase I trial saw an average 30% increase in bull semen motility (in effect, their ability to swim). A planned phase II trial has been delayed to the December quarter, thanks to US President Donald Trump-related customs disruptions. Under the non-exclusive arrangement, Vitrafy retains ownership of the protocols and data. Freezing cells offers hot prospects Cell and gene therapy (CGT) research is booming – notably in off-the-shelf 'allogeneic' cancer therapies derived from donor material. But the frozen material must be as good as fresh, or else it is wasted. Munnings says the company is holding 'active conversations in the US and Australia with significant industry participants'. The Trump administration's cost-cutting drive has sparked concerns about CGT funding, but Munnings says it's still a 'vibrant industry looking for innovation.' She says CGT's approach to cryopreservation differs from the more traditional approach of the blood banks. 'But the blood banks are starting to collect blood for cell and gene therapies, so the two are starting to work together.' Finances and performance Essentially pre-commercial, Vitrafy reported March quarter receipts of $12,000 from its fish work. The company burnt $356,000, taking cash on hand to $34 million. Vitrafy's expenses are running at $1.1 million a month. Chief finance officer Simon Martin cautions spend will ramp up in the June half 'as commercial development intensifies' before settling next year. Vitrafy was awarded an Australian government $4.8m Industry Growth Program grant, for small companies with the potential for commercialisation. The company has pocketed the first tranche and will bank the remainder as research and development progresses over the next six months. Owens says the use of funds outlined in the initial public offer prospectus is on-time and on-budget. As for the US tariff threat, the company sources some components from outside the US. But it is looking to derive as much as possible in the US, where its Melbourne-based contract manufacturer Planet Innovation has a facility (in California). Vitrafy's research and development base remains in the Victorian town of Ballarat which – aptly – is freezing in winter. Its sparsely-traded shares have ranged between $2.03 on November 27 last year – the day after listing – and $1.08 on April 7 this year. Vitrafy versus others Vitrafy competes with three US giants: the Nasdaq-listed Azenta Inc and Cryoport Inc and Cytiva (an arm of the New York-listed Danaher Corporation). Owens argues there's more scope for cooperation than competition, given the parties tend to operate in different parts of the cryogenics supply chain. 'For instance, Vitrafy focuses on crypreservation, thawing and quality management steps, while Cryoport focuses on logistics and storage.' A key selling point is the non-use of toxic cryoprotectants such as DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide). Before cells can be used for animals or humans, the cryoprotectants need to be 'washed out': removed via methods such as centrifugation. In the case of blood platelets for situations such as battlefield injuries, time is crucial. So, achieving 88% recovery without cryoprotectants in the army study was notable. Owens says most rivals use nitrogen as a freezing agent, which also can be harmful. Compare the pair Locally, Vitrafy compares with the ASX-listed Cryosite, which has a 25-year pedigree. In February, Cryosite disclosed December half revenue of $6.6 million, with underlying earnings rising 15% to $1.52 million. Cryosite also reports the month of January was one of the strongest in its history and the company has doubled the capacity of its South Granville facility in Sydney. Cryosite is targeting clinical research organisations, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies with clinical trials, IVF clinics; and hospitals and private clinics with advanced cell therapies, In other words, Cryosite is in a similar space to Vitrafy, albeit not in the animal sector and with a more local focus. Pre listing, Owens said Cryosite was not so much a rival as a potential partner. Cryosite's market capitalisation of $37 million is dwarfed by Vitrafy's circa $100 million. In April 2016, Cryosite said it would maintain the storage of more than 2,000 cord blood materials, following the closure of the Brisbane-based Stemlife business. Dr Boreham's diagnosis 'It doesn't matter for us whether it is blood platelets, cell and gene therapy products, salmon or human sperm, our objective is to maintain the quality of the sample as best as it can possibly be,' Owens says. However, Vitrafy's strategy is to derive initial revenue from the animal market, which is a testing ground for the larger but more complex and highly regulated human market. Vitrafy cites a current global cryopreservation market of US$94 billion, with bio-repositories, such as blood banks, accounting for US$77 billion. Cell cryogenics and the animal/aquaculture sectors account for US$9.4 billion and US$7.8 billion respectively. The market is forecast to grow to US$186 billion by 2030. Post IPO, Vitrafy has been running hot with its development on several fronts. Still, the company's path to revenue is unclear and it needs to work hard to convince potential clients why they should freeze out their long-standing suppliers. At a glance ASX code: VFY Share price: $1.54 Market cap: $98.3 million Shares on issue: 63,849,674 (22.6 million shares are in ASX escrow) Chief executive officer: Kate Munnings Financials (March quarter 2025): receipts $12,000, grant income $2.64 million, cash burn $356,000, cash balance $34 million Identifiable major shareholders: Stacey Investments Australia (Dr Neil Stacey 5%), Krisami Investments 4.1%, VEF Pty Ltd 3.5%, Taylor Hotel Management 3,2%, Rarla Pty Ltd 3% Dr Boreham is not a qualified medical practitioner and does not possess a doctorate of any sort. There's no need to cryopreserve him as he lives in Melbourne, which is almost as cold as Ballarat in winter.
News.com.au
6 days ago
- Health
- News.com.au
Time is running out for Clare McCann to cryogenically preserve her son who died by suicide last week
Time is running out for Clare McCann. The devastated mother desperately trying to keep the lifeless body of her 13-year-old boy preserved so he can 'come back to life' and see the world is not such a 'cruel, horrible place' - and people really do love him. With just 48 hours left to raise $300,000 for cryopreservation, McCann is acutely aware she might miss the crucial time window, and the thought of what to do next is debilitating. 'I've been sitting there with him in the morgue just kissing him, realistically from Thursday I know I should be putting him in a fully synthetic sleeping bad and putting ice packs surrounding him at the minimum to have any kind of chance but I just don't want to disturb him if this is all for nothing,' McCann told Watch McCann's heartbreaking plea in the video player above 'I mean, I want him back, but at the same time, the ice will disfigure him so if I can't use the cryopreservation technology how do I do that to my baby? I can't do that to my beautiful baby. 'If this doesn't work, if I can't raise the money to do this then I can't even think about what's next, a cemetery … I can't even.' McCann was gutted to find her only child Atreyu had died by suicide on Friday after several months of relentless bullying at high school. She said his tormentors held his head under water at school camp, taunted him with name calling, drew pictures on his arms and generally 'made him miserable and withdrawn' to the point he had stayed home from school for the last four weeks. McCann says she wishes she had never sent him to high school. 'Bullies need to be stopped, the system needs to be fixed, this cruel behaviour that goes on it has to stop and schools have to take it seriously and until they do, every child should be home-schooled,' she said. 'I feel so guilty I sent him. Adults need to stand up and fix the system. But how can I fight to save other kids if I can't even save my own child. I need to save him right now that's all I can think about.' McCann has raised almost $12,000 of the $300,000 she needs to have a shot at preserving Atreyu's body. The little boy, named after the hero in The Neverending Story, had talked about the prospect of 'being frozen' when he dies and coming back in the afterlife with his mum. 'We talked about swimming in the ocean, then we joked, no we might get eaten by sharks, so then we thought about coming back as birds and flying together. 'The thought of being able to bring him back gives me something to hang on to. Without that I literally have nothing.' As the hours ticked by this week, and hopes faded for a millionaire with an interest in science coming forward to help fund the cryopreservation, McCann sat with her boy and read him his favourite book. 'I brought him The Neverending story today to read to him in the morgue because we never finished it,' she said. 'It's so sad because the last time we read it was probably two, three weeks ago and we got up to a horrible bit and that's where it was left. So I thought 'I need to take you out of that bit' so I read to him past that bit and beyond. Now I just have to do everything I can to give him a chance to come back.' McCann is hurt by the horrible comments on social media about her plight. 'People are making comments saying I'm entitled, I'm an actress, I'm worth $2 million. I shake my head, I've been a volunteer for the last 10 years, and home-schooling my son. I've never even made like half a million in my life. 'If people don't want to donate or don't agree with what I'm doing then scroll on, why do they have to be so horrible?' Comments like 'what if your son wakes up and you've already passed?' are also hurtful. 'If my son's in cryo, I'm going into cryo. Do you think I'm just gonna let him wake up by himself to his misery? No. And even if I don't make it, I've got friends who've said they'll commit and they'll do it. 'I want him to wake up and see the world can be more kind, and he can get the proper help he needs in a mental health care facility. He can have a second chance.' Founder of Southern Cryonics Peter Tsolakides told time was fast running out for McCann but he was doing everything possible to help. 'We have already lost valuable time so the conditions are not optimal for success for Clare's boy, but no one ever knows, we will help her in whatever way we can. All the members here feel so sorry for what she's gone through,' Mr Tsolakides said. Southern Cryonics is a not-for-profit enterprise and the first cryonics storage facility in the southern hemisphere. Based in Holbrook, it currently houses one body, although more than 40 people have already signed up to go through the process when they die. 'What normally happens is we would have come into contact with the person before death, a medical team would visit the hospital and there is monitoring by the emergency response team until legal death is pronounced,' Mr Tsolakides said. 'It's a complicated process but already, with the time delay, we have missed important steps in cooling the body at the pace we need to keep the brain at optimal health. 'What this process is really about is keeping the brain healthy so that one day when science and medicine catches up, the body is ready for what's next,' he said. Agreeing it is still unknown whether anyone preserved this way can ever be revived, Mr Tsolakides said everyone who has signed up to have their body suspended knows science is a long way behind but it's about 'giving yourself the best chance'.
Medscape
22-05-2025
- Science
- Medscape
‘Medical Antifreeze': How to Freeze and Thaw Brain Tissue
Stories about humans waking up from cryosleep have dominated popular culture for decades in the Alien films, Cameron's Avatar , and Nolan's Interstellar . While these films are out there, space- and time-wise, we know the science exists offscreen. Globally, there are about 500 people in cryogenic preservation: 300 of them in the United States. Thousands more — currently, more than 5000 — are on the waitlist for future cryonic arrangements. The technology for human revival has yet to exist, of course, but cryopreservation as a discipline has long been used in fertility and medical research, particularly for the opportunities it presents in regenerative medicine, organ transplantation, and neuroscience. All of this led to some exciting news: For the first time, scientists at the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg in Erlangen, Germany, successfully revived adult mouse brain tissue after cryopreservation. How They Did It To do so, lead researcher Alexander German and his team knew they had to avoid damage caused by ice formation and crystallization. Traditional freezing methods involving slow cooling at a controlled rate have resulted in the significant loss of synaptic connections in neural tissue. They instead opted for vitrification, transforming the biological tissue into a noncrystalline, amorphous, glass-like state with high cooling rates and, more importantly, a high cryoprotectant, or cryoprotective agent (CPA), concentration. First discovered in the 1940s, cryoprotectants, or 'medical-grade antifreeze,' reduce the risk of crystallization and, by extension, irreversible damage by lowering the freezing point and increasing the solution viscosity and 'glass transition' temperature. On a molecular level, they can do this by reducing the concentration of electrolytes or disrupting water–water hydrogen bonds. Animals that hibernate during the winter months produce their own type of cryoprotectants as they transition into a state of torpor. 'Naturally occurring cryoprotectants in hibernating animals, such as glycerol, glucose, sorbitol, and trehalose, protect tissues against freezing injury during extended periods at subzero temperatures,' said German. 'Animals such as amphibians, insects, and some reptiles accumulate these substances seasonally or in response to environmental triggers.' 'These substances act primarily as osmotic regulators, reducing intracellular ice formation by controlling cellular dehydration and managing the osmotic environment, and can also stabilize cellular membranes and proteins against damage due to cold-induced stress,' he said. While mice are non-hibernators, they can be synthetically induced into torpor to emulate this process. For this study, the team relied on commonly used, synthetic cryoprotectants such as dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), ethylene glycol, formamide, and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) — all chemicals chosen specifically for their manageable toxicity profiles and ability to prevent ice formation during rapid cooling and vitrification. 'Their main function is to transition directly into a glassy state at cryogenic temperatures below −130 °C (or −202 °F) without crystallization. These temperatures do not naturally occur on Earth,' said German. Compared with naturally produced cryoprotectants, which are generally less toxic and more compatible with cellular metabolism, synthetic cryoprotectants are usually inherently more toxic at biologically active concentrations. Vitrification in Action German and his team developed an optimized vitrification procedure that considered potential damage caused by the following six variables: Toxicity of CPAs, determined by their composition, concentration, temperature, and exposure time before vitrification and after rewarming Osmotic shrinking was determined by the CPA loading protocol before vitrification Osmotic swelling was determined by the CPA unloading protocol after rewarming Crystallization was determined by the CPA concentration, composition, diffusion, and the rate of cooling for vitrification and the rate of rewarming Physical cracking was determined by thermomechanical stress during cooling and rewarming in the vitreous state Chilling injury was determined by temperature and exposure time before vitrification and after rewarming To expand on the first variable, high concentrations of CPA have a toxic impact on cells, which increases with concentration, temperature, and exposure time. The transmembrane solute–solvent flux that occurs during concentration changes of CPA results in osmotic changes in cell volume. The team's optimized procedure had to carefully balance potential damage from both. 'Our protocol builds upon the vitrification method reported by Pichugin and colleagues in Cryobiology (2006),' said German. 'We made adjustments to cryoprotectant composition, cooling and warming rates, and exposure times. Notably, we cooled samples significantly below the previously described glass transition temperature, enhancing long-term stability. Additionally, we performed rigorous electrophysiological analyses, which were absent from earlier studies.' To neutralize CPA toxicity, German and his team tested different combinations of cryoprotectants. Combining different CPAs in a single solution would help prevent specific toxicity caused by any one CPA at a high concentration. 'We tested multiple known cryoprotectants, including DMSO, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, glycerol, formamide, N-methylformamide, 3-methoxy-1,2-propanediol, sucrose, PVP K12, and Supercool X-1000 and Z-1000, examining their ability to suppress ice crystallization and minimize toxicity in tissue and cellular models,' said German. 'For example, our published early observations indicated neural activity preservation with 61% ethylene glycol. Later findings demonstrated robust electrophysiological function, including long-term potentiation (LTP), using the 59% w/v [weight/volume] 'V3' mixture.' The team used a variant of the vitrification solution VM3, referred to as V3, which contained a mixture of DMSO, ethylene glycol, and formamide. 'The V3 mixture is based on an empirical observation that the toxicity of vitrification solutions correlates with the strength of hydrogen bonding between water molecules and the polar groups of permeating cryoprotectants, as quantified by a ratio called qv.' Once they applied the V3 cryoprotectant mixture onto mouse hippocampus slices, the researchers cooled the slices to −196 °C (or −320.8 °F) using liquid nitrogen and transferred them to a freezer at −150 °C (or −238 °F), where they were stored for a week. When the slices were taken out, they were rewarmed in 52% V3 at −10 °C (or 14 °F). The researchers observed that no crystallization damage had taken place during cooling or rewarming. Thanks to the cryoprotectant mixture, the slices remained glossy and transparent, and after a series of tests, the team confirmed their near-physiological recovery. There was a modest reduction in basal respiration and limited mitochondrial swelling. Synaptic connections were intact, active, and even demonstrated promising LTP, the most important indication of lasting plasticity and widely associated with learning and memory formation. 'Conclusive determination of memory retention involves whole-brain or organism-level analysis, exceeding what acute slice experiments alone can demonstrate,' said German. 'Nonetheless, successful induction of LTP strongly suggests at least structural prerequisites for memory encoding remain recoverable after vitrification.' 'To prove it conclusively, they would have to use actual animals and show that following cryopreservation, not only could animals be brought back to life, but [that] learning and memory were still operational,' said João Pedro de Magalhães, PhD, a professor of molecular biogerontology at the Department of Inflammation and Aging, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England. Nevertheless, Magalhães, who did not participate in this research, remained impressed and optimistic. 'Although vitrification of brain slices from small rodents with evidence of viability and structural preservation has been done before, this is an advance in terms of functional recovery,' he said. Cryopreserving for the Future So, with all this in mind, can we one day wake up and find ourselves in the Alien universe? To paraphrase Frost, we have a long way to go until we cryosleep. Cryopreserving whole human organs — let alone an entire body — is especially difficult due to their size. It takes longer for larger organs to cool down, making them more susceptible to damage via crystallization and toxic CPA concentrations. While the preservation and revival of hearts, livers, kidneys, and other organs of small mammals via vitrification has previously been achieved, the freezing protocol involved has led to unfavorable, ultrastructural results, according to German. Furthermore, 'vitrification of the whole brain is complicated by the need to cross the blood-brain barrier with cryoprotectants,' he said. As one of the founders of Oxford Cryotechnology, Oxford, England, a research startup dedicated to artificial intelligence–guided cryopreservation methods, Magalhães is particularly interested in how machine learning and artificial intelligence can improve cryopreservation and determine the necessary chemical formulations of cryoprotectants: The ultimate key to achieving successful revival. 'Using big data, such as genomics and data-driven approaches, we aim to identify genes and pathways that can be targeted pharmacologically to improve cryopreservation protocols,' said Magalhães. 'We are trying to repurpose and develop drugs that minimize cryoprotectant toxicity, as well as develop new, safer cryoprotectants using these approaches.' So, figuring out which cryoprotectant combinations are the safest and most effective would inform how humans can come back from cryopreservation as though it were a deep slumber. Whether we cryopreserve ourselves as a way to travel across space or to cheat death, it's important to remember that these are still major hypotheticals, albeit the most fascinating ones. Right now, existing and direct applications of this research would arguably be more impressive and beneficial to society. 'Given the importance of organ transplants and the growing field of tissue engineering, perfecting cryopreservation methods would have a profound impact on medicine,' said Magalhães. 'Low-cost, long-term organ banking through safe cryopreservation of whole organs, which could be rewarmed when needed for transplants, would equate to countless lives saved each year.' The same can be said for the long-term storage of gametes and embryos for later use, as well as stem cells, tissues, and organs for future treatment. There's no need to look to movies when sci-fi magic is taking place right here.
