Evaluation of Mirasol pathogen reduction system by artificially contaminating platelet concentrates with Staphylococcus epidermidis: A pilot study from India

Abstract

Background and Objectives:This study was conducted to assess the efficacy of Mirasol pathogen reduction system for platelets aimed at preventing bacterial regrowth by spiking buffy coat pooled platelets (BCPP) with clinically relevant load of Staphylococous epidermidis.Materials and Methods:BCPP units were prepared using Teruflex BP-kit with Imugard III-S-PL (Terumo BCT, Tokyo, Japan). Two BCPP units were pooled, of which 40 ml of negative control (NC) was removed. The remaining volume of the platelet unit was inoculated with clinically relevant load of bacteria (total of 30 CFU of S. epidermidis in 1 ml); following this the platelet unit was split into two parts. One part served as positive control (PC) and the other part was subjected to pathogen reduction technique (Mirasol PRT, CaridianBCT Biotechnologies, Lakewood, CO, USA). Bacterial detection was performed using BacT/ALERT system, controls after day 1 and day 7 following inoculation of bacteria and on day 7 for Mirasol-treated unit.Results:Of the 32 treatment cycles, 28 were valid and 4 were invalid. No regrowth was observed in 96.4% (27 of 28) after treatment with Mirasol pathogen reduction system. Of four invalid tests, on two instances the NC showed growth, whereas in other 2 no regrowth was detected in 7th day PC. Bacterial screening of PCs by BacT/ALERT after 24 h of incubation was 28.6%, whereas the effectiveness increased to 100% when incubated for 7 days.Conclusions:Mirasol system was effective in inactivating S. epidermidis when it was deliberately inoculated into BCPP at clinically relevant concentrations. Such systems may significantly improve blood safety by inactivating traditional and emerging transfusion-transmitted pathogens.

Mirasol pathogen reduction technology treatment of human whole blood does not induce acute lung injury in mice

“…Pathogen-reduction technology offers an attractive method to reduce transfusion-related infection risks. Several studies have shown that this technology can reduce the risk of pathogen transmission due to contaminated blood transfusions [ 23 , 24 ].…”

New strategies for the control of infectious and parasitic diseases in blood donors: the impact of pathogen inactivation methods

“…This method is effective against pathogens such as bacteria, Plasmodium spp, Leishmania, Ebola virus (4.5 log reduction), MERS-CoV (around 3.5 log reduction) and Chikungunya virus (78,79,80,81,82) but treatment still does not eliminate the potential risk of some viruses which may remain viable (83). In Figure 3 the effectiveness on bacteria are shown.…”

“…However, to obtain high rates of agent titer reduction could often be unnecessary and in some cases "log reduction" may not be a good parameter to estimate the blood safety (107). In fact, it is important to consider that bacterial concentration is not very high shortly after collection and production (generally < 100 CFU/product), so a high log reduction capacity is not necessary (108,79). Instead, possible toxins produced during proliferation or lysis of pathogens are not inactivated by any avaible technology.…”

Synergistic bactericidal effects of pairs of photosensitizer molecules activated by ultraviolet A light against bacteria in plasma

“…Bacterial contamination in blood transfusion products remains a significant risk for patients facing transfusion, particularly with platelet (PLT) components that have been stored at room temperature 5 . To reduce the risk of transfusion‐transmitted septic reactions, photodynamic inactivation of bacteria with ultraviolet (UV) or visible light, with or without photosensitizers, has been developed and can be applied to some transfusion products including PLTs and plasma 6–11 . Photosensitizers are molecules that convert light energy into chemical energy and amplify the biologic effects of light 12 .…”