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Viking_Hippie Apr 30, 2024

Bacterial enzyme strips away blood types to create universal donor blood

Bacterial enzyme strips away blood types to create universal donor blood - Lemmy.World

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/15069736 [https://lemmy.ml/post/15069736] > Bacterial enzyme strips away blood types to create universal donor blood > > “Researchers at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) and Lund University, Sweden, have used enzymes produced by a common gut bacteria to remove the A and B antigens from red blood cells, bringing them one step closer to creating universal donor blood.”

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deranger Apr 30, 2024

It’s a good development, but only works for first time recipients of blood. This only works on ABO group antigens. There are multiple dozens of others, as soon as you get a transfusion once you’ll have antibodies to non-ABO antigens and have to get crossmatched like anyone else.

Cool development, but I don’t see it changing blood banking or transfusion medicine all that much.

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AWistfulNihilist Apr 30, 2024

They specially mention this in the article. It does work on multiple antigens beyond ABO, they even list that there are over 300 blood types that we know of.

Did what you do at a blood bank involve an education or just a name tag, cause they have receptionists and hourly workers at blood banks.

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deranger

I’m a certified medical laboratory scientist. Worked blood bank for a few years.

Article states the enzymes currently only work on B antigens. Doesn’t even clear all ABO…