Suzann K. Doane

Design and development of a method for the reduction of infectious pathogen load and inactivation of white blood cells in whole blood products.

The use of blood components has been a staple of transfusion medicine for several decades. Technologies for the processing and handling of blood, including separation of components from whole blood, are very well developed. Relative to blood safety, methods to detect the presence of pathogens and reduce the levels of donor white blood cells from whole blood are also well established in routine practice. The advantages which exist for the handling of whole blood by these methods have, for various reasons, not extended to the field of pathogen reduction technology (PRT). PRT methods have been developed and are now in routine use in various locations for addressing single donor or pooled plasma and platelet products. Several methods have also been in experimental development for the treatment of red blood cells as a separate component. The ability to treat whole blood in a fashion that would allow a single pathogen reduction and white blood cell inactivation step, to be followed by use of the product in the form of whole blood or separation into components, would afford several benefits from both a logistical and practical standpoint. This manuscript describes development efforts using a photochemical PRT method employing riboflavin and UV-Light (Mirasol PRT).

Development of a riboflavin and ultraviolet light‐based device to treat whole blood

In the United States, blood components are commonly used for patients in need of massive transfusion after blood loss. In combat situations, when severe traumatic injuries occur far from a hospital, fresh whole blood is a valuable transfusion therapy because components may not be available. The risk of infectious or immunological complications from fresh whole blood transfusions could be mitigated by a system that reduces pathogen loads and inactivates white blood cells (WBCs). Such a system is in development and utilizes riboflavin and ultraviolet light to provide pathogen reduction and WBC inactivation.

Reduction of Leishmania donovani infectivity in whole blood using riboflavin and ultraviolet light.

Leishmaniasis is a vector‐borne disease caused by the protozoan parasite Leishmania sp. that is transmitted by sandflies. Travelers to endemic areas, and US military personnel stationed in the Middle East, are at risk for contracting the disease.

Evaluation of potential immune response and in vivo survival of riboflavin-ultraviolet light–treated red blood cells in baboons

BACKGROUND: Pathogen reduction methods have the potential to modify blood components, resulting in immunologic reactions or compromised blood components. This study evaluated the hypothesis that there is no immune response to riboflavin‐and‐ultraviolet [UV]‐light–treated red blood cells (RBCs), as observed by serology and by survival of RBCs in circulation.

Large animal evaluation of riboflavin and ultraviolet light–treated whole blood transfusion in a diffuse, nonsurgical bleeding porcine model

The Mirasol system has been demonstrated to effectively inactivate white blood cells (WBCs) and reduce pathogens in whole blood in vitro. The purpose of this study was to compare the safety and efficacy of Mirasol‐treated fresh whole blood (FWB) to untreated FWB in an in vivo model of surgical bleeding.