WHITE HOUSE ROUNDTABLE ON ORGAN BANKING AND BIOENGINEERING

As a result of discussions with the Organ Preservation Alliance (OPA) and its partner organization, New Organ, the White House held a roundtable discussion on organ cryobanking and regenerative medicine attended by dozens of representatives from large stakeholder organizations.

This roundtable outlined a vision for ending the global organ shortage by combining cryopreservation and regenerative medicine. This forms the blueprint for a potential scientific “Grand Challenge” that could ultimately bring an end to the global organ shortage.

EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES IN ORGAN PRESERVATION SYMPOSIUM AND ROUNDTABLE ON CAPITOL HILL

On Capitol Hill, Organ Preservation Alliance (OPA) held a workshop and roundtable discussion on emerging technologies in organ preservation, highlighting the family of preservation technologies including machine perfusion, supercooling, and cryopreservation. Thirteen major stakeholder organizations sent leaders, joining high-level officials from NIH, the Dept. of Defense and Congress.

WHITE HOUSE HIGHLIGHTS ORGAN PRESERVATION, ANNOUNCING NEW INITIATIVES

The White House held a summit on initiatives to address the organ shortage, hosting over 140 organizations. Organ preservation was one of the key topics, based on an 18 month-long dialogue between the White House and the Organ Preservation Alliance (OPA).

The White House announced a new $160 million research institute in which complex tissue preservation is a key focus, as well as $15 million in support for organ and tissue preservation research and three new OPA programs.

COMPLEX TISSUE CRYOPRESERVATION SESSIONS AT ESTABLISHED SCIENTIFIC CONFERENCES

Organ Preservation Alliance (OPA)-led sessions at established academic conferences have attracted researchers across many fields (e.g., bioengineering, nanotechnology, and transplantation) to the preservation of tissues and organs.

These sessions have resulted in e.g. a featured podcast by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and new partnerships that can accelerate progress in preservation research.