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Fig. 7 | BMC Biotechnology

Fig. 7

From: Development of a vitrification method for preserving human myoblast cell sheets for myocardial regeneration therapy

Fig. 7

Effect of vitrification on the in vivo cardiac function of transplanted cell sheets. (Top) During slow freezing of single cells, the osmotic pressure outside the cell is high, leading to dehydration and shrinkage. If the shrinkage is excessive, the cell membrane is completely destroyed by distortion, thus causing cell death in some cases. (Middle) During slow freezing of cell sheets, a phenomenon similar to that observed in single cells occurs. It has also been reported that cell-cell junctions and the ECM of cell sheets are destroyed by ice crystal formation. (Bottom) Vitrification instantaneously brings the inside and outside of the cell to an extremely low temperature, leaving no time for intra- and extracellular water to form ice crystals. Shrinkage and membrane destruction also do not occur. Therefore, as the ECM and cell membranes are preserved, the structure is better maintained

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