L11- Cord blood banking Flashcards
1
Q
What are the stem cells found in umbilical cord blood?
A
Mesenchymal and haematopoietic stem cells
2
Q
Why is cord blood banking useful?
A
- A match cannot always be found for people from ethnic minorities despite having adult donor registries
- Cord blood is complementary to these existing facilities and can fill in the gaps
- Important resource for those who cannot find an adult donor or for urgent cases
3
Q
What are the advantages of cord blood banking?
A
- A greater degree of mismatch is tolerated in cord transplant than other types
- By HLA typing donating mothers its possible to identify non-inherited maternal antigens the cord has been exposed to (wider range)
- Lower incidence of GVHD in cord transplant
- Units instantly available, no waiting for donors
4
Q
What are disadvantages of cord blood banking?
A
- Cell dose can be low due to finite amount of material available
- No donor-lymphocyte infusion available
- Mean time to engraftment is longer which can influence transplant related mortality
5
Q
How is initial quality control carried out?
A
- Total cell count (>1400x10^6) using haematology analyser
- Stem cell content (>3.2 x10^6)
- Viability of the unit (>85%)
6
Q
How are samples processed and stored?
A
Processing via SEPAX system
Storage is cryogenic
7
Q
How is post process quality control carried out?
A
- Safety (sterile, virology)
- Identity (blood group, HLA)
- Purity
- Potency (viability, colony forming unit assay)
8
Q
What factors impact production of the quality cord units?
A
- HLA licensing inspections
- Net-Cord FACT accreditation
- Post transplant patient monitoring to evaluate graft quality
