Cryopreservation of porcine aortic heart valve leaflet-derived myofibroblasts

Cryopreservation by freezing is usually employed for storage of allogeneic valves destined for clinical use; however, disruption of leaflet extracellular matrices by ice may occur. This study was performed to determine the effects of cryoprotectants employed in VS55 for ice-free, vitreous cryopreservation upon adherent porcine heart valve leaflet-derived myofibroblasts in culture. Low-passage myofibroblasts exhibiting strong actin and myosin staining were employed for these experiments. Three cryoprotectants, dimethylsulfoxide, formamide, and propanediol, were tested individually and in combination. Exposure experiments demonstrated that the individual cryoprotectants (0-5 M) were generally cytotoxic in a dose-dependent manner with little if any loss of cells as determined by measuring metabolic activity and DNA content. Exposure to formamide resulted in the greatest loss of cells and reduction in viability. Combination of the three cryoprotectants demonstrated that the cytotoxic effects of each cryoprotectant were not cumulative. Cell viability and DNA content were equivalent to dimethylsulfoxide and propanediol and higher than formamide alone over most of the 0-5 M dose-response curve. After cryopreservation by slow-rate freezing, the benefits of the combination of cryoprotectants over individual cryoprotectants were demonstrated at the 4 M concentration range for both cell viability and cell retention. In conclusion, these studies demonstrated that, with the exception of the lower concentrations of propanediol, the combination of cryoprotectants employed in these studies result in equivalent or better cell viability and attachment than individual cryoprotectants.