Effect of different cryopreservation media on human nucleus pulposus cells’ viability and trilineage potential

Authors: Andreas S. Croft, Julien Guerrero, Katharina A. C. Oswald, Sonja Häckel MD, Christoph E. Albers, Benjamin Gantenbein,

First published: 14 February 2021

Introduction: Low back pain (LBP) is a significant cause of disability in many countries, affecting more than half a billion people worldwide. In the past, progenitor cells have been found within the nucleus pulposus (NP) of the human intervertebral disc (IVD). However, in the context of cell therapy, little is known about the effect of cryopreservation and expansion on here called “heterogenic” human NP cells (hNPCs), and whether commercially available cryopreservation media are more efficient than “commonly used” media in terms of cell viability.