Gut Bacteria Hold the Key to Creating Universal Blood

In January, raging storms caused medical emergencies along the U.S. East Coast, prompting the Red Cross to issue an urgent call for blood donations. The nation’s blood supply was especially in need of O-type blood that can be universally administered in an emergency. Now, scientists say they have identified enzymes — from the human gut — that can turn type A and B blood into O, as much as 30 times more efficiently than previously studied enzymes. The researchers will present their results today at the 256th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS). ACS, the world’s largest scientific society, is holding the meeting here through Thursday. It features more than 10,000 presentations on a wide range of science topics. A brand-new video on the research is available at http://bit.ly/acsblood. “We have been particularly interested in enzymes that allow us to remove the A or B antigens from red blood cells,” Stephen Withers, Ph.D., says. “If you can remove those antigens, which are just simple sugars, then you can convert A or B to O blood.” He says scientists have pursued the idea of adjusting donated blood to a common type for a while, but they have yet to find efficient, selective enzymes that are also safe and economical. https://www.technologynetworks.com/tn/news/gut-bacteria-hold-the-key-to-creating-universal-blood-307955?utm_campaign=Newsletter_TN_BreakingScienceNews&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=65368459&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8tKih2hgp6Wg25ZPEugkzT3uJuZIG7pSeZIIXe85-YUAiht2q6fSG4_T-_8EgOtnnmuuTTht0UDEqpM41w-IA_6dj8qw&_hsmi=65368460