Clinical Trial to Utilize Expired Blood to Start in Japan

From Jiji

August 17 2024

 Kashihara, Nara Pref – Nara Medical University will begin a clinical trial in spring 2025 of artificial red blood cells made from donated blood past its shelf life that is usually discarded. 

A research team of the university in Nara Prefecture, western Japan, aims to put the artificial cells into practical use around 2030 amid growing interest in using such cells in the event of natural disasters and on remote islands.

The practical use of such cells, if realized, is expected to be the world’s first.

Artificial red blood cells are produced by extracting hemoglobin, which carries oxygen, from donated blood and wrapping it with an artificial lipid membrane, according to the team.

The artificial cells have a purplish color, unlike the common red color of blood, as they are made in a way that they do not oxidize until they are used.