Objective
To determine whether optimal human spermatogonial stem cell (SSC) cryopreservation is best achieved with testicular tissue or single cell suspension cryopreservation. This study compares the effectiveness between these two approaches by using testicular SSEA-4+ cells, a known population containing SSCs. Design: In vitro human testicular tissues. Setting: Academic research unit. Patient(s): Adult testicular tissues (n=4) collected from subjects with normal spermatogenesis and normal fetal testicular tissues (n=3). Intervention(s): Testicular tissue versus single cell suspension cryopreservation. Main outcome measure(s): Cell viability, total cell recovery per milligram of tissue, as well as viable and SSEA-4+ cell recovery. Result(s): Single cell suspension cryopreservation yielded higher recovery of SSEA-4+ cells enriched in adult SSCs, whereas fetal SSEA-4+ cell recovery was similar between testicular tissue and single cell suspension cryopreservation.