Cell banking for regulatory T cell-based therapy: strategies to overcome the impact of cryopreservation on the Treg viability and phenotype.

The first clinical trials with adoptive Treg therapy have shown safety and potential efficacy. Feasibility of such therapy could be improved if cells are cryopreserved and stored until optimal timing for infusion. Herein, we report the evaluation of two cell-banking strategies for Treg therapy: 1) cryopreservation of CD4 cells for subsequent Treg isolation/expansion and 2) cryopreservation of expanded Tregs (CD4CD25CD127 cells).