With hospitals at capacity and prospective blood donors quarantined at home these past few years, blood donations fell when they were needed most. As everyday medical procedures took a backseat to COVID-19 patients, a backlog of treatments ensued.
Israeli company RedC Biotech is looking to alleviate blood shortages by developing universal red blood cells in a lab that can then be employed for patients without the need for a donor.
Their lab-produced universal blood cells follow an exact scientific process. First, the scientists create a “master cell bank” by taking stem cells from a donor with universal O negative blood. The stem cells are then cultivated to a very high concentration where they undergo differentiation (the process through which stem cells turn into their target cells), and propagated (multiplied).
Source: NoCamels