Where's the Synthetic Blood?
The American Red Cross faced a blood shortage in January 2022 due to decreased donors from COVID-19. Synthetic blood research explores stem cell and mimic methods to improve transfusion efficiency, facing economic challenges. Blood evolution shows progress from whole blood to component therapy for tailored treatments.
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The American Red Cross faced a severe blood shortage in January 2022, exacerbated by a 10% decline in blood donors due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Synthetic blood production is a promising solution to overcome traditional blood transfusion challenges, with two main approaches: the biologists' method using stem cells and the chemists' method creating blood cell mimics. Synthetic blood development faces economic and manufacturing hurdles before widespread use. Understanding blood as a complex system is crucial for successful synthetic blood creation, as all blood components work together for clot formation and immune response. Historical perspectives on blood transfusions highlight the evolution from whole blood transfusions to component therapy, where blood is separated into plasma, red blood cells, and platelets for specific medical needs. Component therapy offers advantages like tailored treatments but also poses challenges such as dilution and volume overload risks. While current blood banking practices ensure safety, they rely on a shrinking donor pool and carry minimal risks of disease transmission. Synthetic blood research aims to address these limitations and revolutionize transfusion medicine.
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4 commentsI'd be pushing on this hard, it isn't getting better and it'll swing on a dime if general opinion goes badly on the health issue.
I image it's close to impossible to do science on this in the West anymore, the universities are full of Imposters and private industry isn't going to put up with the grief from university Imposters and the general public for the amount this is worth.
Hope that China sees it as a priority. People who support real science need to find a way to support China.
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