Cryopreservation

Research Spotlight: Dr. Finger Awarded $2.7M to Study the Cryopreservation of Livers for Transplant

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Paxton Alto, Communications Specialist
1 minute
Funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a new research project will build on previous work to improve transplantation processes.
Dr. Erik Finger

Principal Investigator Erik Finger, MD, PhD, associate professor in the Division of Transplantation, along with co-PI John Bischof, PhD in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, with other faculty collaborators in the Department of Surgery (Drs.Pruett, Adams) and Radiology (Dr. Garwood) and at University of North Carolina at Charlotte, has been awarded $2.7 million from the NIH to study the cryopreservation of livers for transplant. 

They have already shown that livers in animal models can be cryopreserved and rewarmed while maintaining organ-level function (Ann Biomed Eng, 2023) but plan to scale up to human-sized organs for transplant.  

"If successful, this approach could revolutionize how organs are allocated, stored, and used for transplantation," said Dr. Finger. "Patients could be better matched to donors, be better prepared for surgery, and have their transplant as a scheduled daytime event rather than an urgent and unplanned operation."

Congratulations, Dr. Finger!