Labs have been using cryogenics for years to store human and animal tissue samples, cell lines, and extracts. Freezing ultimately helps preserve these samples, but for large organisms, freezing can be lethal. Here, we’ll review the current state of knowledge about what happens when we freeze cells, the strategies scientists use to help tissues and organs survive the freezing process, and how nature has adapted to cope with freeze/thaw cycles.  

Errors are difficult to avoid completely, no matter where you work. However, these errors can be especially costly to an assisted reproductive technology/in vitro fertilization (ART/IVF) clinic. With large numbers of donor egg and sperm samples as well as embryos that need to be accounted for on a daily basis, mistakes must be avoided at all costs. Here, we’ll discuss some of the methods IVF clinics have implemented to reduce or outright eliminate mistakes.

Cryogenics is one of the most important fields that has been integrated into biomedical research. It’s employed to store a variety samples, including human tissue specimens, blood samples, and primary cells, making cryogenic storage an essential tool for hospitals and research facilities alike. Here, we’ll briefly explore how the field of cryogenics has developed within the last century to produce the storage equipment used throughout the world to perform ground-breaking research and to discover new medical advances.

Sample identification is critical to running a successful lab. However, there are a host of chemical substances that can ruin your labels, and by extension your experiments. We go over some of the most common of these compounds and how to keep them in check.

As any lab will attest, organizing your bank of cell lines is key to ensuring that your research runs smoothly and efficiently. However, this is easier said than done. How often do students and post-docs go searching for a specific cell line or passage number, only to discover that they cannot find what they’re looking for or that they’ve run out of the cells they need?  Here are 4 simple ways that proper labeling can safeguard your lab against mismanaged cell line banking.