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| Cryogenics. Article courtesy of http://RacingSecrets.com Cryogenics is the study of low temperatures or the production of the same, and is often confused with cryobiology, the study of the affect of low temperatures on organisms, or the study of cryopreservation. Likewise, cryonics is the nascent study of the cryopreservation of the human body, and is not yet an established science like cryogenics. Cryopreservation is a process where cells or whole tissues are preserved by cooling to low sub-zero temperatures, such as (typically) -80°C or -196°C (the boiling point of liquid nitrogen). At these low temperatures, the biochemical reactions that would lead to cell death are slowed or stopped. The cells being preserved, however, are often damaged during the approach to low temperatures or warming to room temperature. Two phenomena which cause damage to cells during cryopreservation are solution effects and intracellular ice formation. Solution effects are caused by concentration of solutes in non-frozen solution during freezing. The mechanism of cell damage due to intracellular ice formation is not well understood. It is a commonly held misconception that the sharp edges of growing ice crystals cause physical damage to cells when they are freezing, and that this is a mechanism of freezing-related damage. This is incorrect, since crystals do not "move" during crystallisation, but rather add new molecules individually to the surface of the growing crystal. Thus, crystals grow around any solid object in their path.  Send this article to a friend Submit an Article Sign up for our FREE Racing Tech Newsletter Webmasters: You may freely reprint this article on your website provided the following caption remains intact, along with a working link.This article courtesy of http://RacingSecrets.com , your racing technology resource. |