Darpa: Unleash the Stem Cells of War!

Most military medical professionals believe that "fresher blood is better than stale: It carries more oxygen and, when transfused into patients, speeds recovery," Popular Mechanics notes. Troops in the field, however, often get blood that's weeks old. So Darpa-backed researchers are working on a $2 million project to "manufactur[e] the red stuff on the spot."

The key ingredient in this "blood pharming" effort: umbilical-cord stem cells.
Arteriocyte researchers were trying to grow big batches of stem cells when they realized that the growing conditions they used—such as temperature and levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide —caused the stem cells to turn into an early stage of red blood cell. At first they were frustrated because they wanted stem cells. Then they realized that they may have unintentionally found a clever way to produce new blood...

The DARPA award gives Arteriocyte three years to scale up to a self-contained system that could turn out 100 units of universal blood (which could be transfused into people with any blood type) a week for eight weeks... In the end, if the system works, soldiers and civilian patients could have all the blood they need available on tap.
CNet, which reported on the project last month, has a bit more on the project. And it should be noted that not all military medical types believe that new blood is any better than old. "At this point, there is not strong evidence to believe that fresh whole blood gives a better outcome," says Dr. David Walker, with the Defense Health Board.

Amazing! Help our troops with a removal of the cap on federal spending on stem cell research please.
Pooch Hound

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/12/darpa-unleash-t.html