Organ Vitrification and Nanowarming by ATP-Bio (NSF Engineering Research Center): status and timeline

Organ Vitrification and Nanowarming

Extend organ viability from hours to days or weeks, enabling better organ matching and reducing transplant rejection through preserved organ function.

PilotStage 3 of 5

Rat kidneys preserved for 100 days and transplanted with full function. Human trials preparation underway.

Updated 24 Jul 2026Checked 11 Oct0 updates this week

Milestones

Next · FDA IND approval for human trials

ATP-Bio established as NSF Engineering Research Center2021Complete.
Rat kidney vitrification for 100 days, successful transplant2023Complete.
Nanowarming technology refined for uniform rewarming2024Complete.
Supercooled pig kidney preservation for 72 hours achievedJul 2026Complete.
FDA IND approval for human trialsTarget 2027Not yet reached.

Most important updates

Upcoming

2027FDA IND approval for human trials (next)

Current obstacles

Toxicity of cryoprotectant chemicalsAntifreeze compounds that prevent ice formation can damage cells. Finding the right concentration is a major challenge.
Scaling to larger, complex organsLivers and hearts are much larger and structurally complex, making uniform vitrification and rewarming harder.

Physics limits

Vitrification requires extreme coldStoring organs at -196°C requires liquid nitrogen infrastructure that must be maintained continuously to prevent warming.
Large organs harder to vitrify uniformlyLarge organs with multiple tissue types and high water content are harder to equilibrate with cryoprotectants uniformly.
Long-term storage viability unknownWhether organs can be stored for months or years without cumulative molecular damage is still unknown.

How it works

3 parts

Preparation

Cryoprotectant infusion

Kidneys are infused with antifreeze-like cryoprotectant molecules and iron oxide nanoparticles for freezing prevention.

Preservation

Vitrification to ultra-low temperatures

Cooled to -196°C, organs reach a glassy state where all biological activity stops. No ice crystals form.

Rewarming

Radiofrequency nanowarming

Radiofrequency fields cause nanoparticles to generate uniform heat throughout the organ, rapidly and evenly thawing it.

Spec sheet

Spec	Organ Vitrification and Nanowarming
Rat kidney max storage (vitrified)	Up to 100 days^R (reported)
Time to full function recovery	Within 30 days^R (reported)
NSF ERC funding	$26 million over 5 years^R (reported)

^R reported by the company

Papers & demos

2 items

Jul 2026demo
Supercooled pig kidney preservation and transplant (opens atp-bio.org)Supercooled pig kidney preservation at -4°C for up to 72 hours without ice, rapid recovery post-transplant.
2023demo
Rat kidney cryopreservation for 100 days, successful transplant (opens erc-assoc.org)Demonstrated the longest out-of-body solid organ preservation time, with kidneys stored vitrified for up to 100 days.

Update log

4 updates

About ATP-Bio (NSF Engineering Research Center)

The team behind Organ Vitrification and Nanowarming

ATP-Bio (NSF Engineering Research Center)

Organ preservation, cryopreservation, nanowarming, biopreservation

NSF Engineering Research Center co-led by University of Minnesota and Massachusetts General Hospital. Develops advanced technologies to preserve biological systems through cryopreservation and nanowarming.

ATP-Bio is an NSF-funded engineering research center with $26 million over five years, directed by John Bischof at U Minnesota.
Demonstrated cryopreservation and nanowarming of rat kidneys for up to 100 days, followed by successful transplant.
July 2026: supercooled pig kidney preservation and transplant (up to 72 hours) presented at American Transplant Congress.

atp-bio.org (opens atp-bio.org)Company profile →

Founded: 20206 yrs
Headquarters: United States
Status: Non-profit
Valuation: non-profit
Raised: $26M1 round
Last round: NSF Engineering Research Center · $26M2021
Works in: LongevityBiostasis
Coverage: 1 program · 4 updateslatest 24 Jul 2026checked 11 Oct
Lead investors: National Science Foundation
Partners: University of Minnesota (opens umn.edu)Massachusetts General Hospital (opens massgeneral.org)Texas A&M University (opens tamu.edu)UC Riverside (opens ucr.edu)Johns Hopkins University (opens jhu.edu)
People: John BischofDirector

Spec

Organ Vitrification and Nanowarming

Rat kidney max storage (vitrified)

Up to 100 days^R (reported)

Time to full function recovery

Within 30 days^R (reported)

NSF ERC funding

$26 million over 5 years^R (reported)

Organ Vitrification and Nanowarming

Milestones

Most important updates

Upcoming

Current obstacles

Physics limits

How it works

Cryoprotectant infusion

Vitrification to ultra-low temperatures

Radiofrequency nanowarming

Spec sheet

Papers & demos

Update log

Fri 24 Jul

Mar 2025

2023

2021

About ATP-Bio (NSF Engineering Research Center)

Current obstacles

Physics limits

How it works

Cryoprotectant infusion

Vitrification to ultra-low temperatures

Radiofrequency nanowarming

Spec sheet

Papers & demos

Update log

Fri 24 Jul

Mar 2025

2023

2021

About ATP-Bio (NSF Engineering Research Center)