UGent develops spin freeze-drying technique in fight against viruses and cancer
Vaccines based on mRNA technology armed our immune system for the first time against the dreaded coronavirus. Transporting and storing those vaccines poses a number of problems, however. The spin freeze-drying technology developed by Ghent University is now changing that.

If you want to transport and store mRNA vaccines in liquid form, you must freeze them to a temperature of -80°C, especially if they are destined for extremely hot countries where energy supplies are uncertain. Other vaccines can be freeze-dried, that is, dehydrated so they can be stored in powder form. Not only is that easier, but it is also better for the environment. Nevertheless, both processes are slow, expensive and consume a lot of energy.
The spin freeze-drying technique that Ghent University's Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences is working on saves time, costs and energy. In a machine, a supply of vials containing vaccines for injection spins continuously along a shaft. At the same time, a stream of cold gas freezes the vaccine into a thin product layer on the wall of the vial. The final product has undergone checks in relation to all important parameters, so its quality is fully guaranteed. Vaccines can already be prepared in this way on a small scale at RheaVita, a spin-off of Ghent University, and in time, it should be possible to deal with a virus outbreak on a larger scale.
The pharmaceutical industry has already expressed an interest in machines of this type. What is more, it is expected that by 2030, this advanced spin freeze-drying technology could even be used to produce an mRNA vaccine against lung cancer.
So the outlook is promising!