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Cryo-electron Microscopy

Cryo-electron Microscopy

Conventional electron microscopy (EM) involves dehydration, fixation, and staining of biological samples, which distorts the native state of biological molecules and results in several artifacts. Also, the high-energy electron beam damages the sample and makes it difficult to obtain high-resolution images. These issues can be addressed using cryo-EM, which uses frozen samples and gentler electron beams. The technique was developed by Jacques Dubochet, Joachim Frank, and Richard Henderson, for...

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Updated: Mar 5, 2026

Fertility Preservation Through Oocyte Vitrification: Clinical and Laboratory Perspectives

Fertility Preservation Through Oocyte Vitrification: Clinical and Laboratory Perspectives

Published on: September 16, 2021

Cryopreservation: Vitrification and Controlled Rate Cooling.

Charles J Hunt¹

¹UK Stem Cell Bank, National Institute for Biological Standards and Control, Blanche Lane, South Mimms, Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, EN6 3QG, UK. Charles.Hunt@nibsc.org.

Methods in Molecular Biology (Clifton, N.J.)

|March 30, 2017

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Cryopreservation uses low temperatures to preserve cells, but current methods like slow freezing and vitrification are suboptimal for stem cells. Optimizing these techniques is crucial for reliable cell banking and clinical applications.

Keywords:

Cell line Cryopreservation Embryonic stem cells Human Induced pluripotent stem cells Slow cooling Vitrification

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Last Updated: Mar 5, 2026

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Published on: March 2, 2017

Area of Science:

Cellular Biology
Biotechnology
Cryobiology

Background:

Cryopreservation preserves cells using low temperatures, employing cryoprotectants to mitigate damage from ice formation and solute concentration.
Vitrification offers an alternative by preventing ice crystallization but requires high cryoprotectant concentrations, posing potential toxicity or damage risks during rewarming.

Purpose of the Study:

To review current cryopreservation and vitrification protocols for stem cells.
To highlight the limitations of existing methods for clinical-grade pluripotent stem cell banking.
To emphasize the need for optimized protocols to ensure cell viability and genetic integrity.

Main Methods:

Review of conventional slow-cooling and vitrification techniques in cryopreservation.
Analysis of cryoprotective agents and their effects on cellular damage.
Examination of challenges in cryopreserving embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells.

Main Results:

Current cryopreservation protocols for stem cells, including vitrification and slow freezing, are suboptimal for clinical applications.
Suboptimal cryopreservation can lead to product loss and selective pressure, altering cell populations.
Understanding fundamental freezing processes is key to improving cryopreservation outcomes.

Conclusions:

Robust and reproducible cryopreservation protocols are essential for stem cell commercialization and clinical use.
Further research into cryopreservation mechanisms is needed to develop improved methods for stem cell banking.
Optimized cryopreservation will ensure the integrity and representativeness of cell banks for therapeutic applications.