English Česky
Infoline
Registration
Counseling

PROCESSING OF UMBILICAL CORD BLOOD

The aim of umbilical cord blood processing is to prepare the transplant, which can be stored for decades without changing. At present, there are several methods used for preparation of a transplant. These methods differ mainly in the preparation of umbilical cord blood prior to freezing. The aim of these methods is either to keep the entire volume of collected cord blood, or to isolate only the hematopoietic stem cells, and thus significantly reduce the final volume of material for storage and the company's expense. Based on scientific findings, our company does not use these methods of reduction. Through the reduction, it comes to the irreversible loss of relatively large volume (20%) of perfectly vialble stem cells. We use a method inherited from the largest and oldest registry of cord blood transplants in the United States of America - New York (www.nybloodcenter.org) which is time-proven – we freeze the entire volume of umbilical cord blood (we separate only the excess plasma).

Technical equipment of our laboratories is at the highest level. All instruments used in laboratories are from world-renowned manufacturers and even the material used is strictly controlled by national authorities (National Institute for Drug Control - SIDC) and carries the CE compatibility of the European Union. Laboratories fully conform to safety and hygiene requirements, including circulation and HEPA air filtration, the use of germicidal burners, with regular check-ups of sanitary technology and clean environment. Actual processing of cord blood is performed by trained, fully qualified staff in laminar boxes "Biohazard" with controlled vertical airflow, thus reaching the maximum level of cleanliness “A” (corresponding to the cleanliness of rooms of microchip manufacturing). These procedures prevent any contamination of samples.

For the purpose of accurate identification of the transplant, a special database was created to record all data from the transplant center (hospital), the surveyed data during processing, storage and testing, the results of tests of biological material and particularly a unique code under which the transplant is stored, with an emphasis on safety and protection of such data. All clients’ data of Cord Blood Center CZ are managed and stored under the Law on Personal Data Protection. Cord Blood Center CZ is registered by the Department for Protection of Personal Data as a data controller under the registration number 00035210/001.

 

THE PROCEDURE FOR THE HANDLING AND PROCESSING OF COLLECTED UMBILICAL CORD BLOOD IN OUR LABORATORY

First, it is necessary to admit the collected umbilical cord blood in the tissue institute from the hands of the transport assistant to the hands of laboratory worker who is responsible for the admittance of samples that day. A visual inspection of a sampler set, venous blood of the mother and documentation is performed. Everything is carefully recorded and the sampler set with maternal blood is cleaned and disinfected. It may be for short period, until the time of processing, stored in a specialized cooling device.

  1. Actual processing begins by marking a sampler bag with a unique numeric code (registered in the database) and its thorough disinfection.
  2. Evaluate the volume of collected cord blood and the number of nuclear stem cells.
  3. The process continues with centrifugation and sampling for later testing (HLA typification in case of allogeneic use), virological tests etc.
  4. After sampling the umbilical cord blood is transferred from the sampler bag into the “kryovaku” (a bag that is low-temperature tolerant) and it is filled with a special kryo-preservative solution with appropriate concentration of DMSO (dimethylsulphoxide). This solution prevents the water crystals to from forming in the cell, which can tear and destroy the cell membrane.
  5. In this way the prepared graft is placed in a protective metal casing and together with other samples are placed in a special freezing unit / device with liquid nitrogen and with gradual refrigeration (controlled by a computer program) the required temperature of -196°C is reached. This procedure is along with the whole sample processing very significant (so called critical) for the final quality of the transplant. Thus, we do not leave it to chance, and closely monitor and record everything during the processing. In case of a potential power outage, we have a back-up generator.
  6. After the processing, the transplant and the samples are carefully removed from the device and inserted quickly into a storage container that is placed in a prepared and marked location (so called sector). In the same way, the bone marrow and peripheral blood is stored.
  7. Specialized external laboratories (certified by the competent licenses that are authorized and approved by SIDC) evaluate other critical parameters of the graft (vitality, virology, microbiology, CD 34/45+ cells) while the transplant is stored in liquid nitrogen.
  8. After the delivery of the transplant (approximately 4 weeks after the birth), the laboratory prepares the results of umbilical cord blood processing with the administration department, which are mailed to you at the reported address. If the processing results are good there is no reason not to agree with long-term storage that is provided by trained employees of our tissue bank.

 

STORAGE OF UMBILICAL CORD BLOOD

Umbilical cord blood is stored in liquid nitrogen vapor at -196°C. Quantity and temperature of liquid nitrogen in kryo-bag is controlled by the monitoring system and during the day also by authorized personnel. For security reasons the system is completely independent of the input power from the network. Full automation and daily controlling by our staff is also introduced in the system filling the liquid nitrogen from storage containers, which is supplied by a proven contractor.

For further security assurance, the storage areas are designed to eliminate damage by fire, floods, landslides, etc. The storage rooms are equipped with a special alarm signaling system against vandalism, which is directly connected to the building security officer in charge and police of the Czech Republic. Our specialized operations, including equipment, space, and especially your transplants are fully covered by appropriate insurances from reputable companies operating on the market in the country.