For the first time in the world, the participants of a British clinical trial received artificially produced blood, the procedure can make life easier for those who need regular transfusions and those with rare blood groups – reports the BBC.
In the experiment, they are investigating the effects of a small amount of artificial blood – a few tablespoons – on the human body. For now, two people are participating in the experiment, but the researchers want to include at least ten people in the tests. Test subjects receive one dose of normal blood and one dose of artificial blood at least four months apart.
Blood produced in a laboratory can be a solution for those who need regular blood transfusions and those with extremely rare blood types. Blood transfusions are successful if the donor’s blood or its components are compatible with the blood of the recipient (the patient).
The amount of blood stocks often depends on how many people are willing to donate blood, but in Britain, for example, only three units of blood are stored from the extremely rare Bombay blood group, identified in India in the 1950s. The basis of the experiment is artificially produced red blood cells using stem cells. They are responsible, among other things, for transporting oxygen and carbon dioxide in the body.
Red blood cells decompose in the body after an average of 120 days. Traditionally, a mixture of young and older red blood cells is used for blood donation. The patients would be given red blood cells freshly produced with the new procedure, which actually works for 120 days, so according to the researchers, they should receive transfusions less often and in smaller quantities.
The University of Bristol, Cambridge and London, as well as the British National Health Authority (NHS) are participating in the research.
Farrukh Shah, NHS director of transfusions, said the research lays the groundwork for the artificial production of red blood cells, which could then be safely used to transfuse people with conditions such as sickle cell anemia.
He added that their research could be particularly significant for those for whom the possibility of blood transfusions is otherwise limited.
MTI
