Bone and cartilage grafts harvested from donor tissue don’t survive for very long, with estimates that around 80% of tissue donated for joint repair is going to waste. Researchers at University of Missouri School of Medicine have now developed a new way to preserve such tissue for much longer than previously possible, doubling its lifetime and hopefully leading to a major reduction in the need for such tissue.
Currently, donor tissue is preserved in refrigerators, floating within a special solution that keeps it viable for about a month. The Missouri Osteochondral Allograft Preservation System (MOPS) uses a new solution and specially designed containers to more than double this while not requiring refrigeration, another major benefit.
Here’s a video from University of Missouri explaining the new technology:
Study in Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research: A Novel System Improves Preservation of Osteochondral Allografts…
Statement from from University of Missouri: MU Researchers Develop Preservation Method for Donor Tissue…