Liver partial freezing

Partial freezing of rat livers extends preservation time by 5-fold

The need for transplantation is growing steadily while the supply of donor organs is nowhere near demand. Extending organ preservation has increasingly been identified as a national research priority that would significantly impact organ allocation, handling, and transplantation in several important ways. Read the full article here

The partial freezing protocols
a Schematic overview of the partial freezing protocol showing the target perfusion temperature (top blue line) and pressures (bottom blue line) during the subsequent steps in the protocol. Livers were stored at either −10 or −15 °C. The numbers in circles match the explanation of the protocol in the introduction and Methods section. The perfusion solutions and the rate of change between the solutions are shown in blue boxes. SPS = subnomothermic preconditioning solution, HPS = hypothermic preloading solution, TS = thawing solution. See Supplementary Table S1 for the exact composition of the solutions. b Photos of the livers during the consecutive steps of the protocol. From left to right; SNMP preloading, HMP preloading, partial freezing, CPA unloading, functional recovery during SNMP, and start of simulated transplantation.

Bethanie Stadler: Nanoheaters for Electronics and Organ Donation

Professor Bethanie Stadler invented microscopic nanowires that can be rapidly heated for use in nanoelectronics and potentially help make cryogenically-preserved organs available for donation.

What do nanoelectronics and organ preservation have in common? Both technologies can be advanced by super small nanoheaters. Thanks to research on nanoelectronics by Beth Stadler and Rhonda Franklin, professors of electrical and computer engineering, and research on cryoengineering by John Bischof, director of the University’s Institute for Mechanical Engineering in Medicine, we may one day see both nanoelectronics and organ preservation become reality.

Stadler has invented magnetic nanowires that generate heat very quickly in an alternating magnetic field. One application of these nano-scopic particles will hopefully be realized due to an NSF Engineering Research Center (ATP-Bio) that is led by John Bischof. The center is investigating ways to quickly and uniformly thaw cryogenically preserved organs so that the organs won’t be damaged during warming. By flooding the organs with a solution filled with magnetic nanoparticles before they are frozen, technicians could use alternating magnetic fields to safely heat the nanoparticles, and therefore the organs. “This could really be society-changing,” says Stadler, whose nanowires are one of many magnetic nanoparticles under study.

Stadler is working on several projects, including integrating nanowires into high-frequency circuits with Franklin as well as using magnetoelectric oxides to protect lasers from their own reflected power by allowing for one-way transmission of light. “I would love to see things we do in the lab go somewhere and actually impact products,” says Stadler. That’s why she regularly works with Tech Comm to see if her work should be patented and help get it into the hands of companies or investors who can bring it to market.

“Tech Comm staff have deep technical knowledge as well as a sophisticated understanding of what businesses need. This combination makes all the difference.” She credits Tech Comm with keeping up with her most advanced technical work and communicating it clearly to companies who might be interested in licensing it. They’ve helped her overcome commercialization setbacks and successfully license multiple inventions with Boston Scientific.

By leaning on Tech Comm for help with the business side of things, Stadler has more time to focus on what she loves: teaching and innovating. “I love working with students,” she says. “I don’t mind teaching the same classes every year —even Circuits 101—because to me it’s like doing Sudoku puzzles, which I quite enjoy, and happily so do most engineering students.”

Visit University Inventors to learn more about working with the Tech Comm office and find commercialization resources to help you increase your research impact.

U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith Announce $26M NSF ERC Grant to UMN

“This week, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) announced that the National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded the University of Minnesota Institute for Engineering in Medicine and three academic collaborators $25,999,491 to create an Engineering Research Center (ERC).

The goal of the ERC, called the Advanced Technologies for Preservation of Biological Systems (ATP-Bio), is to develop and deploy technology to “stop biological time” through temperature control. This will improve transplantation and other biological therapies by preserving organs, tissues and cells. It will also help drive down the cost of drug discovery and much more.

In addition, the center will provide educational programs to middle schoolers and high schoolers, fund research internships in ATP-Bio labs for undergraduate students, and work to increase diversity in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields.

“When we invest in education and innovation for our state, we invest in a brighter future for Minnesota and our country,” Klobuchar said. “This National Science Foundation funding will allow the University of Minnesota to expand biology programs that engage middle and high school students in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math.”

“Minnesota’s universities and colleges are innovation hubs full of possibility,” said Sen. Smith. “I’m delighted to see the University of Minnesota’s Institute for Engineering in Medicine receive this award. I look forward to following their impressive bioengineering work, which will create opportunity for our country. And I’m glad that the center will offer education opportunities to middle and high school students, as well as internships to undergraduates. It’s important that we keep creating more pathways to careers in STEM.”

The University of Minnesota will partner with Massachusetts General Hospital, University of California, Berkeley; and the University of California, Riverside on the ATP Bio center. The award is set for an initial five-year period and is renewable in 2025 for another five years.”

Learn more about the grant here.

National Science Foundation Invests $104 Million To Launch Four New Engineering Research Centers

The National Science Foundation is creating four new Engineering Research Centers [Image: GETTY]

The National Science Foundation has announced awards totaling $104 million to create four new Engineering Research Centers (ERCs). The new centers, each with several leading American research universities collaborating as partners, will receive $26 million apiece for an initial five-year period.

ATP-Bio

The goal of the ERC for Advanced Technologies for the Preservation of Biological Systems is to stop biological time by designing methods to cryogenically cool, hold and re-warm living materials without harm, extending the ability for them to be banked and transported.

The University of Minnesota’s Institute for Engineering in Medicine and Massachusetts General Hospital’s Center for Engineering in Medicine and Surgery will be funded to create the ATP-Bio center, which will involve four core partners: University of Minnesota (lead); Massachusetts General Hospital (co-lead); University of California, Berkeley; and University of California, Riverside.

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Michael T. Nietzel, Forbes (Aug. 6, 2020)

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