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Phoenix: A Portable, Battery-Powered, and Environmentally Controlled Platform for Long-Distance Transportation of
Brittany N Willbrand1, Sylvia Loh1, Caitlin E O'Connell-Rodwell1
1SCORPIO-V Division, HNu Photonics LLC, Kahului, HI, United States.
Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology
|July 17, 2020
Summary
Phoenix™ enables long-distance transport of living cell therapies, improving patient access to advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs). This mobile incubator maintains cell viability and proliferation, outperforming traditional frozen transport methods.
Area of Science:
- Regenerative Medicine
- Biotechnology
- Cell Therapy Logistics
Background:
- Advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs) face accessibility challenges due to limited transport options.
- Current methods of shipping cells (frozen on dry ice or in liquid nitrogen) can be detrimental to cell viability and are time-consuming.
- There is a significant market need for reliable, long-distance transport solutions for living cell cultures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the Phoenix-Live Cell Transport™ system for its efficacy in transporting living cell cultures.
- To compare the Phoenix™ system's performance against standard cell culture incubators and traditional frozen cell transport methods.
- To assess the impact of transit conditions, including vibration, on cell viability and proliferation.
Main Methods:
- SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells were cultured in the stationary Phoenix™ incubator for up to 5 days.
- Cell viability and proliferation were assessed and compared to cells cultured in a standard 5% CO2 incubator.
- Cells were subjected to simulated ground and air transport vibrations to evaluate the impact on viability and proliferation.
- Environmental sensors (temperature, pressure, humidity, accelerometer) logged data during transport simulations.
Main Results:
- No significant difference in SH-SY5Y cell proliferation (∼5X growth) or viability (>90%) was observed when cultured in Phoenix™ compared to a standard incubator.
- Ground and air transit vibrations did not significantly affect SH-SY5Y cell proliferation (∼2X growth) or viability (>90%).
- Phoenix™ system successfully maintained optimal conditions, logging critical environmental data during transport.
Conclusions:
- The Phoenix™ mobile incubator is a superior method for transporting living cells compared to traditional frozen methods.
- This technology enhances patient accessibility to advanced therapy medicinal products by enabling remote delivery.
- Phoenix™ ensures quality-controlled, reproducible transport of sensitive cell lines, supporting global commercialization of ATMPs.
