Artificial blood could be used in trial transfusions by 2016

Cheap blood supplies could soon be a reality thanks to a breakthrough in the field of regenerative medicine.

Researchers at the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service have manufactured type O negative blood, which is considered the universal donor type. O negative is not common, only seven percent of people have it.

An unlimited, disease-free supply of O negative will be a game changer for hospitals, as surgeons won’t need to worry about sorting out blood types first.

Over at Forbes, Paul Rodgers explains how the blood was made:

The artificial blood was derived from stem cells that have been made from an adult donor’s skin or blood. These donor cells are genetically rewound to become induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, which have the potential to develop into any of the body’s 200 tissues.

The iPS cells are cultured for a month in a chemical environment, similar to that found in bone marrow, that encourages them to mature into red blood cells. Up to half of them do so. Standard techniques, such as centrifuging, are then used to separate the artificial blood from other cells.

Trials will commence by 2016, reports Smithsonian, and hopefully soon after large-scale production will begin.