Development of a new device for manipulating frozen mouse 2-cell embryos on the International Space Station

Whether mammalian embryos develop normally under microgravity remains to be determined. However, embryos are too small to be handled by inexperienced astronauts who orbit Earth on the International Space Station (ISS). Here we describe the development of a new device that allows astronauts to thaw and culture frozen mouse 2-cell embryos on the ISS without directly contacting the embryos. First, we developed several new devices using a hollow fiber tube that allows thawing embryo without practice and observations of embryonic development. However, the general vitrification method requires liquid nitrogen, which is not available on the ISS. Therefore, we developed another new device, Embryo Thawing and Culturing unit (ETC) employing a high osmolarity vitrification method, which preserves frozen embryos at −80°C for several months. Embryos flushed out of the ETC during thawing and washing were protected using a mesh sheet. Although embryonic development could not be observed in the ETC, thawed embryos formed blastocysts after 4 days of culture without direct contact. This ETC will enable untrained astronauts to thaw and culture frozen embryos on the ISS, as well as to serve as an important advance in fields such as clinical infertility and animal biotechnology.