ERC Develops a Cross-Institutional Graduate-Level Course for Advanced Training in Biopreservation
Outcome/Accomplishment
The NSF-funded Engineering Research Center (ERC) for Advanced Technologies for the Preservation of Biological Systems (ATP-Bio), co-led by the University of Minnesota and Massachusetts General Hospital, designed a full-length, graduate-level course covering the basics of cryopreservation. The course was offered at the University of Minnesota for the first time in Fall 2023 and made available to trainees across the Center through classroom recordings and curriculum sharing
Impact/Benefits
The cryopreservation course is a step toward developing a graduate curriculum based on ATP-Bio research. ATP-Bio trainees and other graduate students across all the ERC’s partner institutions who take the course will learn fundamentals about the ERC’s technology and build computational skills they will use later.
Explanation/Background
The two-part course was developed by ATP-Bio Center Director John Bischof and ATP-Bio trainees Joe Kangas and Nikolas Zuchowitz.
The first half of the course delves into engineering principles of heat and mass transfer as they apply to biomolecules, cells, and tissues. The second half of the course discusses how properly preserving these biological materials at cold temperatures has the potential to, in effect, stop biological time. This would potentially make it possible to bank biospecimens such as tissues, research specimens, or whole organs for extended periods of time. Students in the course build computational skills using MATLAB software.
Location
Minneapolis, Minnesotawebsite
Start Year
Biotechnology and Healthcare
Biotechnology and Healthcare
Lead Institution
Core Partners
Fact Sheet
Outcome/Accomplishment
The NSF-funded Engineering Research Center (ERC) for Advanced Technologies for the Preservation of Biological Systems (ATP-Bio), co-led by the University of Minnesota and Massachusetts General Hospital, designed a full-length, graduate-level course covering the basics of cryopreservation. The course was offered at the University of Minnesota for the first time in Fall 2023 and made available to trainees across the Center through classroom recordings and curriculum sharing
Location
Minneapolis, Minnesotawebsite
Start Year
Biotechnology and Healthcare
Biotechnology and Healthcare
Lead Institution
Core Partners
Fact Sheet
Impact/benefits
The cryopreservation course is a step toward developing a graduate curriculum based on ATP-Bio research. ATP-Bio trainees and other graduate students across all the ERC’s partner institutions who take the course will learn fundamentals about the ERC’s technology and build computational skills they will use later.
Explanation/Background
The two-part course was developed by ATP-Bio Center Director John Bischof and ATP-Bio trainees Joe Kangas and Nikolas Zuchowitz.
The first half of the course delves into engineering principles of heat and mass transfer as they apply to biomolecules, cells, and tissues. The second half of the course discusses how properly preserving these biological materials at cold temperatures has the potential to, in effect, stop biological time. This would potentially make it possible to bank biospecimens such as tissues, research specimens, or whole organs for extended periods of time. Students in the course build computational skills using MATLAB software.