Effect of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Technology in Blood Banking

Abstract

SUMMARYPopulation aging has imposed cost-effective alternatives to blood donations. Artificial blood is still at the preliminary stages of development, and the need for viable cells seems unsurmountable. Because large numbers of viable cells must be promptly available for clinical use, stem cell technologies, expansion, and banking represent ideal tools to ensure a regular supply. Provided key donors can be identified, induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology could pave the way to a new era in transfusion medicine, just as it is already doing in many other fields of medicine. The present review summarizes the current state of research on iPSC technology in the field of blood banking, highlighting hurdles, and promises. STEM CELLS TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE 2016;5:269-274 SIGNIFICANCEThe aging population in Western countries is causing a progressive reduction of blood donors and a constant increase of blood recipients. Because blood is the main therapeutic option to treat acute hemorrhage, cost-effective alternatives to blood donations are being actively investigated. The enormous replication capability of induced pluripotent stem cells and their promising results in many other fields of medicine could be an apt solution to produce the large numbers of viable cells required in transfusion and usher in a new era in transfusion medicine. The present report describes the potentiality, technological hurdles, and promises of induced pluripotent stem cells to generate red blood cells by redifferentiation.

Genetic manipulation of cell line derived reticulocytes enables dissection of host malaria invasion requirements

“…Generation of immortalized erythroid cells able to proliferate indefinitely in an undifferentiated state whilst maintaining the capacity to undergo differentiation to generate reticulocytes has been a major goal of the erythroid biology field for decades. Early excitement surrounding the development of induced pluripotent stem cell lines has been tempered by the observation of severe erythroid differentiation defects, expression of fetal globins, and to date minimal capacity for enucleation 10–12 . The capability of orthochromatic erythroblasts, characterized by their condensed nuclei, to support malaria parasite entry 13,14 has led to exploration of cell lines unable to complete differentiation as a model for invasion 15 .…”

Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Red Blood Cells and Platelet Concentrates: From Bench to Bedside

“…IPs-derived, pathogen-free, autologous or universal blood carries the potential to alleviate or eliminate the allogeneic blood shortages [ 25 ]. Small-scale bioreactors with disposable kits currently allow for in-hospital expansion of suspension cell cultures [ 26 ]; on an industrial scale, large-scale bioreactors would allow bulk production of iPS cells in desired amounts and potentially with no Hayflick limit.…”

Erythropoietic properties of human induced pluripotent stem cells‐derived red blood cells in immunodeficient mice

“…In the proper therapeutic niche, iPSC-RBCs would be high-value products due to their unique characteristics and the potential to alleviate shortages of specific RBC products. 28 Here, we tested the effect of human platelet lysate (hPL) on the maturation of iPSC-RBCs, and investigated the in vivo behavior of the resulting iPSC-RBCs in the immunodeficient NOD scid gamma (NSG) mouse model. We also showed that iPSC homed to the bone marrow and continue development to mature RBCs, suggesting that this may represent a useful in vivo model to better understand the mechanisms directing erythroblasts to differentiate into mature RBCs.…”