Red Blood Cells News and Research

RSS

Study shows in-flight blood transfusions improve outcomes in trauma victims

Air-lifted trauma victims who received blood transfusions in the helicopter before arriving at a trauma center had higher one-day survival rates and less chance of shock than air-lifted patients who did not receive blood transfusions until they arrived at the trauma unit, according to study findings published online in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.

16 Feb 2015

Researchers develop novel approach to identify potential antimalarial drugs

Each year nearly 600,000 people--mostly children under age five and pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa--die from malaria, caused by single-celled parasites that grow inside red blood cells. The most deadly malarial species--Plasmodium falciparum--has proven notoriously resistant to treatment efforts.

12 Feb 2015

Study shows low-dose oral iron supplementation after blood donation reduces hemoglobin recovery time

Among blood donors with normal hemoglobin levels, low-dose oral iron supplementation, compared with no supplementation, reduced the time to recovery of the postdonation decrease in hemoglobin concentration in donors with low or higher levels of a marker of overall iron storage (ferritin), according to a study in the February 10 issue of JAMA.

11 Feb 2015

TUSM researchers awarded $7.4 million to study brain impairment in patients infected with HIV

Researchers at Temple University School of Medicine have been awarded a $7.4 million, five-year grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to determine how cocaine and HIV-1 interact to cause brain impairment in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus.

11 Feb 2015

Balanced blood product ratios can improve outcomes in severe trauma patients

Among patients with severe trauma and major bleeding, those who received a transfusion of a balanced ratio of plasma, platelets, and red blood cells (RBCs) were more likely to have their bleeding stopped and less likely to die due to loss of blood by 24 hours compared to patients who received a transfusion with a higher ratio of RBCs, according to a study in the February 3 issue of JAMA.

9 Feb 2015

New RT-DC technology enables faster and continuous mechanical screening of cells

Cells, like any other material, have mechanical properties that can serve for their characterization. For example, cancer cells are characteristically more deformable than healthy cells.

9 Feb 2015

Battlefield blood transfusion protocol improves patient outcomes

Working to save the lives of military personnel suffering massive blood loss in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, United States military trauma surgeons developed a blood transfusion protocol that is employed in most military and civilian hospitals today.

5 Feb 2015

FDA accepts Sangamo BioSciences' IND for SB-BCLmR-HSPC genome editing approach

Sangamo BioSciences, Inc. announced today that an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for the company's SB-BCLmR-HSPC genome editing approach, which is designed to provide a one-time lasting therapy for beta-thalassemia, has been accepted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is now active.

4 Feb 2015

Study examines why hydroxyurea yields mixed results in children with sickle cell disease

Electronic medication monitoring caps may help physicians put together the puzzle of why children taking a medicine that promises to curb sickle cell disease are showing mixed, confusing results.

2 Feb 2015

Some genetic features associated with modern diseases are ancient

Psoriasis, a chronic skin condition, can cause rashes that itch and sting. So why would a genetic susceptibility to this and other ailments persist for hundreds of thousands of years, afflicting our ancient ancestors, and us?

31 Jan 2015

CML mouse model reveals previously unreported facets of disease

A humanised murine model of chronic phase chronic myeloid leukaemia, developed by a Swedish research team, provides insight into previously unexplored characteristics of the disease.

12 Jan 2015

Donate blood this holiday season

During the holidays, Americans are busy picking the perfect present, gathering with family and friends, and ringing in the New Year.

31 Dec 2014

Deoxygenated hemoglobin triggers conversion of nitrite to nitric oxide

Understanding how nitrite can improve conditions such as hypertension, heart attack and stroke has been the object of worldwide research studies. New research from Wake Forest University has potentially moved the science one step closer to this goal.

14 Dec 2014

Study finds that K13 gene mutations cause malaria drug resistance in Southeast Asia

Growing resistance to malaria drugs in Southeast Asia is caused by a single mutated gene inside the disease-causing Plasmodium falciparum parasite, according to a study led by David Fidock, PhD, professor of microbiology & immunology and of medical sciences (in medicine) at Columbia University Medical Center.

12 Dec 2014

Scientists report new family of selective molecules to combat causal agent of malaria

Malaria is one of the most serious health problems worldwide, registering 200 million clinical cases and more than 600,000 attributable deaths per year, according to information from the World Health Organization in 2013. Given the emerging resistance to the standard treatment most widely used throughout the world, which is based on artemisinin and its analogs, there is a need for new antimalarial compounds.

11 Dec 2014

Researchers develop nanomimics of host cell membranes that trick malaria parasites

Malaria parasites invade human red blood cells, they then disrupt them and infect others. Researchers at the University of Basel and the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute have now developed so-called nanomimics of host cell membranes that trick the parasites. This could lead to novel treatment and vaccination strategies in the fight against malaria and other infectious diseases.

9 Dec 2014

Emerging strategies to boost healthy RBCs may reduce burden of anemia linked to blood disorders

Emerging treatment approaches may reduce the burden of anemia associated with blood disorders by enhancing production of healthy red blood cells, according to data presented today at the 56th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition.

7 Dec 2014

Promising anti-malarial compound uses novel mechanism to kill malaria parasite

An international research collaborative has determined that a promising anti-malarial compound tricks the immune system to rapidly destroy red blood cells infected with the malaria parasite but leave healthy cells unharmed. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists led the study, which appears in the current online early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

5 Dec 2014

Jakafi receives expanded approval from FDA for use in treatment of polycythemia vera

Diplomat Pharmacy, Inc., the nation's largest independent specialty pharmacy, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved an expanded indication of Jakafi (ruxolitinib).