British researchers have successfully transfused into two healthy volunteers red blood cells grown from stem cells donated by others
1940s, blood transfusions often went wrong because some of the main blood-group systems, such as the Rhesus factor, had yet to be discovered. This hit or miss approach to matching donors with recipients is now a thing of the past, as tests for all sorts of characteristics of an individual’s blood have become available. But finding a well-matched donor can still be difficult.
That done, the harvested stem cells were grown and multiplied in a nutrient solution for between 18 and 21 days, which served to turn them into young versions of red blood cells known as reticulocytes. Once transfused, reticulocytes quickly develop into the real McCoy. This approach would increase the value of batches of rare blood—which could, once plundered of stem cells, also be used in the normal way.
That will help a lot. At the moment, patients with blood disorders such as sickle-cell disease and thalassaemia may require a transfusion as often as every four to six weeks. As a consequence, some develop iron overload, which causes severe complications. Others end up forming antibodies against many blood types, which makes finding a matching donor harder.
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