Patent Publication Number: US-11389801-B2

Title: Cell storage tube

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to a storage container, and more particularly, to a container for storing cells. 
     2. The Prior Arts 
     Cell storage technology aims to store healthy cells by certain means to ensure the function and activation of the cells not be materially altered. Stored cells could be used in treatment on oneself or family when disease is diagnosed, or in experimental researches. 
     For example, the number of stem cells in human body decreases with age, degrading their performance for tissue repair, cell generation and differentiation. Thus, it is recommended to store one&#39;s own stem cells in young age when stem cells still remain great in number. Besides, it is likely to find immune cells from a person with cancer be severely damaged due to invasion of cancer cells and destructive chemical treatments. In absence of healthy immune cells, efficacy of treatment may be limited; thus, it is worth considering storing healthy immune cells early. 
     In general, cells needed to be store in a low temperature environment, for example, in liquideous nitrogen (−196° C.). Considering that either storage of cells into the storage tubes or extraction of cells from the tubes for usage requires to be performed under a sterile condition, and that cell extraction may be performed with multiple accesses to the storage tube, rather than an one-time incident, it is important to ensure the convenience of cell extraction and at the same time prevent cells in the storage tube from being contaminated due to multiple accesses for extraction. 
     A conventional cell storage container normally includes a storage tube main body for accommodating cells and a sealing plug for sealing the main body. A user removes the sealing plug from the main body to put in or take out cells. However, in order to tightly seal the main body, the sealing plug is often difficult to be removed, making the usage of the cell storage container inconvenient. Moreover, with such configuration, the sealing state of the main body is released during cell extraction and thus cells in the main body may be contaminated. 
     It is known that there has been developed a type of cell storage container which includes a storage tube, a sealing member for sealing the storage tube, and a sealing cover covering the sealing member. Since the sealing member is utilized on the cell storage container to seal the storage tube, in order to extract cells, a pin may penetrate the sealing member to obtain cells in the storage tube; furthermore, as the sealing cover is merely served to cover the sealing member, it may be designed as a structure easy to be opened, thereby facilitating the operation of the container. Yet, during the insertion of the pin through the sealing member, it is frequent that the pin could not align with the center of the tube and happens to collide with wall of the storage tube, causing damage of the pin. In addition, when cells have been put into the tube ready for sealing, it is often difficult for the sealing member to be inserted into the storage tube; the sealing member may encounter deformation or damage during insertion. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A primary objective of the present invention is to provide a cell storage tube which is simple and convenient in assembly. By configuring a guiding chamfer on the sealing member, the user is allowed to easily insert the sealing member into the main body of the storage tube and seal the cells within the main body. In addition, the main body of the storage tube is always remained in a closed and sealed state in the process of cell extraction from the main body, preventing the cells in the main body of the storage tube from being contaminated and allowing the storage tube to be maintained in a sterile state. Furthermore, the insertion of the pin is assured to be inserted from the center of the insertion part by utilizing a reticle on the insertion part, thereby preventing the pin from being damaged due to collision with the wall of the tube. As a result, the present invention is capable of simplifying the sampling procedures and is easy, safe and reliable for use. 
     The cell storage tube of the present invention may comprise a main body, a sealing member, a cover body and a sealing cover. The main body of the storage tube includes an accommodating chamber, an opening end and a closed end. The sealing member is disposed at the opening end of the main body and sealing the accommodating chamber. The sealing member includes an assembly part and an insertion part. The assembly part is coupled to the main body, and an end of the assembly part has a guiding chamfer slanted inward with an angle such that a lower part of the assembly part having an outer diameter gradually reduced in a downward direction. The tip of the guiding chamfer is preferably an arc-shape. The guiding chamfer guides and facilitates an insertion of the sealing member into the main body. The insertion part has a reticle arranged on a top thereof. The reticle of the insertion part may be cross-shaped and recessed inward. The reticle helps alignment of the pin so that the pin can be inserted through the center of the main body. The cover body is disposed at the opening end of the main body, and one side of the cover body is configured with a through hole. The sealing cover is disposed on a top of the cover body and detachably coupled with the cover body, wherein the sealing cover closes the through hole of the cover body when the sealing cover is combined with the main body. 
     In a preferred embodiment, a groove having a depth is arranged at a bottom of the assembly part. The groove is recessed upward from the bottom of the assembly part, wherein the groove of the assembly part has an inner diameter gradually reduced in an upward direction. Preferably, the inner diameter of the groove does not have to be too wide, as long as the pin is allowed to pass through. In addition, a side wall of the sealing member is configured with sufficient thickness so that the sealing member is not easily damaged and prevented from distortion and deformation when it is inserted into the main body. More preferably, the groove is configured with sufficient depth such that the insertion part at the upper part of the sealing member has a thin wall through which the user can insert the pin from the insertion part to the main body without significant effort. 
     Furthermore, the sealing member may include a convex part annularly protruding between the assembly part and the insertion part. The convex part abuts a periphery of the main body at the side of the opening end, such that the sealing member does not slide downward when a force is applied. Preferably, the cover body at its upper part has an inner shape that is corresponding to an outer shape of the convex part  23  and above of the sealing member  20 . As a result, the cover body abuts the convex part of the sealing member such that the sealing member is secured on a top of the main body. 
     Preferably, the sealing member is comprised of silicon material. 
     The opening end of the main body may have an outer thread on an external side thereof, and the cover body may have an inner thread corresponding to the outer thread on an internal side thereof; thus, the main body and the cover body may be combined by the outer thread and the inner thread. In addition, a protrusion is configured at the opening end and annularly protruding from the external side of the main body. The protrusion is configured with a plurality of ratchet teeth at an upper part thereof, and the cover body is configured with a plurality of pawl teeth in corresponding to the ratchet teeth, the pawl teeth engage with the ratchet teeth such that the cover body is secured and locked at the opening end of the main body. 
     The cover body and the sealing cover may be combined by a buckle structure. 
     A stand part may be configured at the closed end of the main body and annularly protruding from a periphery thereof in a downward direction. 
     The accommodation chamber of the main body may have a cone-shaped or arc-shaped bottom. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art by reading the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, with reference to the attached drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a cell storage tube according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the cell storage tube according to the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a sectional view of the cell storage tube according to the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a top view of a sealing member of the cell storage tube according to the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a sectional view of the sealing member of the cell storage tube according to the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic view illustrating an usage of the cell storage tube according to the embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 7  is a schematic view illustrating the usage of the cell storage tube according to the embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 to 5 , a cell storage tube  100  of the present invention comprises a main body  10 , a sealing member  20 , a cover body  30  and a sealing cover  40 . The main body  10  of the storage tube includes an accommodating chamber  13 , an opening end  11  and a closed end  12 . The sealing member  20  is disposed at the opening end  11  of the main body  10  and sealing the accommodating chamber  13 . The sealing member  20  includes an assembly part  21  and an insertion part  22 . The assembly part  21  has an outer diameter which is slightly larger than an inner diameter of the opening end  11  of the main body  10 , such that the assembly part  21  may be tightly coupled to the main body  10 . An end of the assembly part  21  has a guiding chamfer  212  slanted inward with an angle such that a lower part of the assembly  21  part has an outer diameter gradually reduced in a downward direction. A tip of the guiding chamfer  212  of the assembly  21  part is preferably an arc-shape so that it can guide and facilitate the insertion of the sealing member  20  into the main body  10 . The insertion part  22  has a reticle  221  arranged on the top thereof. The reticle  221  of the insertion part  22  may be cross-shaped and recessed inward. The reticle  221  helps the alignment of the pin  200  so that the pin  200  can be inserted from the center of the main body  10 , preventing the pin  200  from being damaged due to collision with the wall of the tube. The cover body  30  is disposed at the opening end  11  of the main body  10 , and one side of the cover body  30  is configured with a through hole  31 . The sealing cover  40  is disposed on a top of the cover body  30  and detachably coupled with the cover body  30 , wherein the sealing cover  40  closes the through hole  31  of the cover body  30  when the sealing cover  40  is combined with the cover body  30 . 
     Preferably, the insertion part  22  of the sealing member  20  protrudes from the main body  10 , and an upper surface of the insertion part  22  substantially aligns with an upper periphery of the cover body  30  in height so that the insertion part  22  is exposed, helping the user to insert the pin  200 . In addition, the assembly part  21  may have a groove  211  having a depth configured at a bottom of the assembly part  21 . The groove  211  is recessed upward from the bottom of the assembly part  21 , and the groove  211  of the assembly part  21  has an inner diameter gradually reduced in an upward direction. Preferably, the inner diameter of the groove  211  does not have to be too large, as long as the pin  200  is allowed to pass through. Meanwhile, a side wall of the sealing member  20  has sufficient thickness so that the sealing member  20  is not easily damaged and prevented from distortion and deformation when it is inserted into the main body  10 . More preferably, the groove  211  has sufficient depth that the insertion part  22  at an upper part of the sealing member  20  has a thin wall through which the user can insert the pin  200  from the insertion part  22  to the main body  10  without significant effort. 
     Preferably, the sealing member  20  includes a convex part  23  which is configured annularly between the assembly part  21  and the insertion part  22 . The convex part  23  abuts a periphery of the main body  10  at the side of the opening end  11 , such that the sealing member  20  does not slide downward when a force is applied to the sealing member  20 . 
     Preferably, the sealing member  20  is comprised of silicon material. Comprised by elastic silicon, the sealing member  20  can be easily inserted into the main body  10  for assembly. Furthermore, silicon material allows the pin  200  to penetrate there through effortlessly. 
     Preferably, the cover body  30  at its upper part has an inner shape that is corresponding to an outer shape of the convex part  23  and above of the sealing member  20 . As a result, the cover body  30  is allowed to abut the convex part  23  such that the sealing member  20  is secured on the top of the main body  10 . Moreover, the cover body  30  defines the shape of the sealing member  20 , preventing the sealing member  20  made by elastic silicon from deformation when force is applied thereto. 
     The opening end  11  of the main body  10  may have an outer thread  15  on an external side thereof, and the cover body  30  may have an inner thread  33  corresponding to the outer thread  15  on an internal side thereof, allowing the main body  10  to be combined with the cover body  30  by the outer thread  15  and the inner thread  33 . In addition, a protrusion  16  may be annularly configured at the main body  10 , at a position below where the main body  10  and the cover body  30  are combined. The protrusion  16  may be configured with a plurality of ratchet teeth  161  at a side near the cover body  30 , and the cover body  30  may be configured with a plurality of pawl teeth  35  in corresponding to the ratchet teeth  161 . The pawl teeth  35  engage with the ratchet teeth  161  such that the cover body  30  is secured and locked at the opening end  11  of the main body  10 . 
     The accommodation chamber  13  may form a cone shape or an arc shape at the closed end  12 , allowing the user to instantaneously and conveniently extract the cells at the bottom of the accommodation chamber  13  by the pin  200 . Moreover, a stand part  14  may be configured at the closed end  12  of the main body  10  and annularly protruding from a periphery thereof in a downward direction, such that the main body  10  can be appropriately placed during usage to prevent it from falling and leakage. 
     The cover body  30  may be configured with a plurality of ribs  32  around an external side thereof. The ribs  32  are spaced apart with each other and protruding from the cover body  30 , allowing the user to easily grab the cell storage tube  100 . 
     The top of the cover body  30  may be annularly configured with a flange  34 , and an inner circumference of the sealing cover  40  may be recessed with a coupling slot  42  in corresponding to the flange  34 , allowing the sealing cover  40  to be detachably secured on the cover body  30  by a buckle structure formed by the flange  34  and the coupling slot  42 . In addition, a top of the sealing cover  40  may be annularly configured with a block  41  at an external side thereof, allowing the user to apply force onto the sealing cover  40  to open it. In addition, the sealing cover  40  is annularly configured with an inclined plane  43  inclining toward an inner side from a bottom periphery of the sealing cover  40 . The inclined plane  43  operates as a guiding means by which the sealing cover  40  can easily slide into a correct position to be buckled with the cover body  30  without deliberate alignment. 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , which is an exploded view of the cell storage tube  100  according to the embodiment of the present invention. In particular, when the cell storage  100  is for use, cells are first extracted from human body, cultured and then placed into the main body  10 . By the guiding chamfer  212  of the sealing member  20 , it is easy to insert the sealing member  20  into the main body  10  to close the accommodation chamber  13  of the main body  10 . Meanwhile, since the side wall of the sealing member  20  has sufficient thickness, the sealing member  20  is prevented from damage and deformation during insertion. After the accommodation chamber  13  of the main body  10  is sealed by the sealing member  20 , the cover body  30  and the main body  10  are combined by the outer thread  15  and the inner thread  33 , and the sealing member  20  is secured on the top of the main body  10 . Next, the sealing cover  40  is buckled on the top of the cover body  30  by the buckle structure, sealing the sealing member  20 . Finally, the cell storage tube  100  is placed into a barrel with liquideous nitrogen to be frozen and adequately stored. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 6 and 7 , when cell extraction is needed, the cell storage tube  100  is taken out from the liquideous nitrogen barrel. The sealing cover  40  is opened to expose the insertion part  22  of the sealing member  20 , and the pin  200  is aligned with the center of the cross-shaped reticle  221  for insertion. Once the pin  200  is inserted and accesses into the accommodation chamber  13  of the main body  10 , the cells can be extracted for usage. After extraction, the sealing cover  40  is put back to cover the sealing member  20  and finally the cell storage tube  100  is put into the liquideous nitrogen barrel to be stored for the next use. 
     It is apparent that the cell storage tube  100  of the present invention has the following beneficial effects: 
     The cell storage tube  100  of the present invention allows sampling of cells to be performed in a hermetic condition, thereby preventing the cells remained in the cell storage tube  100  from contamination. 
     The cell storage tube  100  of the present invention allows easy and fast assembly. By utilizing the guiding chamfer  212  of the sealing member  20 , the sealing member  20  can be effortlessly inserted into the main body  10 . 
     The cell storage tube  100  of the present invention allows cell extraction by directly inserting the pin  200  into the sealing member  20  without opening the cover body  30 , thereby simplifying the sampling procedures. 
     The cell storage tube  100  of the present invention has the reticle  212  at the insertion part  22  of the sealing member  20 , helping the user to aim the center of the insertion part  22  for insertion, thereby preventing the pin  200  from damage due to collision with the wall of the main body  10 . 
     Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that a variety of modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention which is intended to be defined by the appended claims.