Dehydrated Stocks Are Resistant to Multiple Freeze-Thaw Cycles.

Ultracold preservation is widely used for storage of genetic stocks of Current cryopreservation protocols are vulnerable to refrigeration failures, which can result in the loss of stock viability due to damage during re-freezing. Here we present a method for preserving worms in a dehydrated and frozen form that retains viability after multiple freeze-thaw cycles. After dehydration in the presence of trehalose or glycerol, stocks can be frozen and thawed multiple times while maintaining viability. While both dauer and non-dauer larvae survive desiccation and freezing, the dauer defective mutant does not survive desiccation. Our technique is useful for storing stocks in a manner robust to freezer failures, and potentially for shipping strains between laboratories.