Future Deposits For American Blood Banks?

Thursday, March 1, 2007

Future Deposits For American Blood Banks? (NAPSA)—“Blood is thicker than water.” “Blood brothers.” “Bad blood.” These and other expressions are so popular in mythology and religion due to the unique life-giving properties of blood. Unfortunately, this special gift is often difficult to find when people most needit. American blood banks are 1 experiencing critical shortages of lifesaving blood—especially dur- ing the summer months. It is reported that in the U.S. alone, someone needs a red blood transfusion every three seconds. One in three people will need a blood transfusion in their lifetime. The success in finding a blood substitute would go a long way in relieving the blood shortage. The search for a viable blood substitute has just become more encouraging. Although the last 35 years have seen previous efforts fail because of toxicity issues, one strategy to identify and nullify the source of toxicity seems to be promising. HemoBioTech, a Dal- las-based pharmaceutical company, is developing a viable blood substitute, called HemoTech, that is expected to be compatible with all blood types and have a shelf life of 180-plus days, compared to 42 days for donated blood. The blood substitute is composed of chemically modified bovine hemoglobin. In natural blood, hemoglobin binds with oxygen as the blood travels through the lungs and drops it off at the cells, throughout the body. HemoTech works the same way, by carrying oxygen in the blood to the cells, and it has an additional ben- efit of actually inducing red blood cell production. A 35-year search for a blood substitute that works in people may now be nearing a successful end. Healing Blood Researchers at Texas Tech Uni- versity Health Sciences Center began developing HemoTech in 1985. The research and development effort was led by two of the world’s foremost blood substitute authorities, Drs. Mario Feola and Jan Simoni. In one limited clinical study, nine sickle cell anemia patients were infused with an amount of blood substitute representing 25 percent of the patients’ blood vol- ume. That limited clinical trial resulted in significant patient improvement and showed that a blood substitute can work as an effective oxygen carrier in humans without any toxic side effects. “The world needs a viable human blood substitute now more than ever before,” says Arthur Bollon, Ph.D., Chairman, President and CEO of the Dallas-based company. “Somescientists believe that a viable blood substitute would be a medical breakthrough that could potentially save millions of lives every year.” To learn more about the studies, visit www.hemobiotech.com.

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