PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a preservative for an animal cell or organ capable of making the animal cell or organ preservable for a long period without freezing and freely controlling the proliferation and division of the cell by including a polyphenol as an active component.SOLUTION: This preservative for an animal cell or organ is obtained by including a polyphenol as an active component. Catechins, tannic acids, etc., which are main ingredients of green tea polyphenols are cited as the polyphenol. The catechins are especially preferred and the catechins consisting essentially of epigallocatechin gallate are more preferred. Cells containing a stem cell, a dermal cell, a mucosal cell, a hepatocyte, an islet cell, a neuron, a cartilagenous cell, an endothelial cell, an epithelial cell, a bone cell, a myocyte or the like isolated from a human or an animal tissue or a sperm, an ovum, a fertilized egg or the like of livestock and fishes are cited as the cell. Skin, a blood vessel, the cornea, the kidney, the heart, a liver, an umbilical cord, intestines, a nerve, a lung, a placenta, pancreas and the like are cited as the organ.COPYRIGHT: (C)2000,JPO動物細胞を長期間保存するには極低温での凍結保存法が用いられているが、融解後の生存率は10~30%と低い。また、移植用の臓器の保存期間は、臓器の種類にもよるが4時間から40時間と極めて短い。これらの問題の解決、即ち、動物細胞を凍結させずに保存を可能にすることと移植用臓器の保存期間を少なくとも従来の保存可能時間の倍以上に高めることを図る。ポリフェノールを従来の細胞培養液あるいは臓器保存液に添加することにより、課題を解決する。
