Patent ID: 8222027

Claim:
A cryopreservation device comprising: a container for receiving and storing a liquid sample, said container having an inlet fitting opening into said container; an auto-nucleating device disposed within said container, said auto-nucleating device including; an elongated hollow tube sized for introduction through said inlet fitting; an ice-nucleating composition disposed within said hollow tube; and a seal at both ends of said tube, at least one end sealed with a membrane that is impermeable to the ice-nucleating composition but permeable to the liquid contained within the cryopreservation vessel; an adaptor mounted to said fitting, said adaptor having a first tubular branch and a second tubular branch, said second tubular branch terminating in a tube engaging fitting; a septum closing said first tubular branch, said septum adapted to be pierced by a needle; a tube engaged at one end to said tube engaging fitting on said second tubular branch; and a closure at the opposite end of said tube.