Anthony Nolan is a stem cell charity that has created a stem cell register of more than 800,000 potential donors for patients who need a transplant, helping to save the lives of people living with blood cancer and other disorders. The charity is also a trusted supplier of starting cellular materials and associated laboratory services for researchers and those in the biotech and pharmaceutical industries.
Using liquid nitrogen to store stem cells, patient and donor material, and umbilical cord blood cryogenically is the core of the charity’s groundbreaking work. Air Products has been working with Anthony Nolan for the past 15 years to ensure the charity’s use of cryopreservation continues to evolve, keeping pace with increasing demand.
Watch this video to see how Air Products supported Anthony Nolan.
Air Products and Anthony Nolan working together
Video Credit: Air Products PLC
Life-saving infrastructure
Having cryogenically frozen cord and adult blood samples for over ten years, Anthony Nolan needed to significantly increase the volume of frozen stem cells for transplants during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic due to the newly unpredictable transplant schedules and disruptions to travel.
It is critical for the charity to be able to freeze cells at a constant temperature, as it helps to preserve their unique characteristics, ensuring they can be used for life-saving research or transplants.
“Our partnership with Air Products is about more than just a supplier of liquid nitrogen - it’s about having reliable experts in cryo-gases at-hand, who provide us with all the equipment and maintenance required to keep us functioning as a provider of lifesaving cellular materials”.
Anthony Nolan is supplied with Medical Device Regulation (MDR) certified liquid nitrogen by Air Products. The largest supply goes to the charity’s Nottingham site, and additional supply goes to its site in London. These supplies are used in four liquid nitrogen-freezers that store cellular materials for transplants, quarantine, and cell and gene therapies, as well as to fill the CryoCart, which serves as a mobile cryogenic workbench.
Critical supply
Ensuring a reliable and consistent supply of liquid nitrogen is crucial because fluctuations or increases in temperature have an enduring, damaging effect on the cells, making them futile for both research and transplant purposes.
Air Products utilizes a remote telemetry system at Anthony Nolan’s site in London, enabling them to track and observe the supply of liquid nitrogen while minimizing disruptions. This level of trust and partnership is crucial for allowing the Anthony Nolan team to focus on their life-saving work.
Chris Leonforte, Head of Cell and Gene Therapy Manufacturing explains, “Anthony Nolan needs a constant supply of liquid nitrogen to ensure we can freeze and provide cells for transplant. Communication is really important in the relationship with Air Products, and day to day working is pretty seamless. Deliveries come weekly and it’s largely a hands-off process which is really helpful in allowing us to focus our efforts where they are most needed.”
Image Credit: Air Products PLC
Reducing carbon footprint
Second to the charity’s need for an uninterrupted stem cell supply is a real desire to reduce its carbon emissions.
It’s important to Anthony Nolan that we minimise our carbon footprint as much as possible. The work we do requires a lot of energy to be able to provide safe and effective materials for transplant. Because of this we look to see where we can save small amounts of energy.
Chris Leonforte
Anthony Nolan has worked closely with MVE and Air Products to ensure their cryotanks are energy efficient and support the organizations’ shared focus to generate a cleaner future.
The HEco 1500 & 1800 Series freezers, employed by Anthony Nolan at the Nottingham site, are the most efficient vapor freezers currently available, providing maximum storage density, the longest hold time, and the highest security for samples in the history of the industry. Some also incorporate hinged work surfaces that completely surround all electronics and plumbing to enhance overall safety and usability.
Chris Leonforte comments, “The cryotanks that were provided by Air Products and MVE are vapor phase liquid nitrogen tanks, which means the amount of liquid nitrogen required to maintain cryogenic temperatures is less as the cells are not submerged in liquid nitrogen. In other words, a vapor phase tank allows Anthony Nolan to maintain the life saving cells at the required temperature of -190 °C whilst using less liquid nitrogen”.
Long-term partnership
This partnership between Anthony Nolan and Air Products continues to evolve. The team at Air Products consistently reviews its supply model, including tank sizing, bespoke racking, freezer capacity, cryo room location, and the filling method.
Image Credit: Air Products PLC
For both organizations, this is more than a demand-supply relationship, and rather a long-term partnership in which both teams are heavily invested.
“We enjoy working with Air Products on a number of different collaborations in the form of events and workshops, helping us contribute even more to the field of cell therapies and transplant science. Having reliable partners that are invested in who we are, and the critically important work we do is so important.”
About Air Products PLC
Air Products touch the lives of consumers around the globe in positive ways every day. With approximately 16,000 employees and operations in 50 countries, we serve customers across a wide range of industries from food and beverage to medical, energy, and transportation. We supply a unique portfolio of atmospheric and process gases, equipment, and services.
Founded in 1940, Air Products has built a reputation for its innovative culture, operational excellence, and commitment to safety and the environment. Our passionate, talented, and committed employees from a diversity of backgrounds are driven by Air Products’ higher purpose to create innovative solutions that benefit the environment, enhance sustainability and address the challenges facing customers, communities, and the world.
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