RESEARCHERS from the Albany MedicalCentre (AMC) in New York, have deviseda new technique which will lead to ablood type that would be compatiblewith all blood types. They have developed a process to coat red bloodcells with a polymer called polyethyleneglycol, or PEG, that would make itpossible to transfuse any type of bloodinto any patient. Red blood cells arenot affected by the chemical coating.The technique will have importantclinical benefits, especially for patientswith rare blood types, says MarkScott, who is leading the research teamat AMC.
Human blood is divided into fourblood types - A, B, AB and o, dependingon the antigens present on the surface ofblood cells. If the wrong blood type isgiven to a patient, these antigens cantrigger powerful and destructive reactions. But this problem can now beovercome by coating the blood cellswith PEG so that the antigens are notdetected by the immune system. "Thisprevents the destruction of foreignblood types," says Scott.