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Freezing life within refractory, amorphous silicon dioxide

Nature Reviews Bioengineering volume 2, pages 282–283 (2024)Cite this article

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The cryopreservation of biological samples is hindered by ice formation and the need to maintain samples under cryogenic conditions during storage and transportation. Silicification offers a simple method for preserving life within refractory, amorphous silicon dioxide, which is analogous to vitreous ice but does not melt and thereby avoids cold-chain issues.

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Fig. 1: Natural and synthetic cell silicification.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. MOE International Joint Research Laboratory on Synthetic Biology and Medicines, School of Biology and Biological Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, P. R. China

    Sishi Guo & Wei Zhu

  2. Center for Micro-Engineered Materials and the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA

    C. Jeffrey Brinker

Authors
  1. Sishi Guo
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  2. C. Jeffrey Brinker
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  3. Wei Zhu
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Correspondence to C. Jeffrey Brinker or Wei Zhu.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Guo, S., Brinker, C.J. & Zhu, W. Freezing life within refractory, amorphous silicon dioxide. Nat Rev Bioeng 2, 282–283 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44222-024-00173-6

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