Red blood cells are the most transfused blood product in battlefield trauma care. Unfortunately, they are sometimes in limited supply in a battlefield environment. DARPA's Blood Pharming program seeks to create an automated culture and packaging system that will yield a fresh supply of universal donor red blood cells from progenitor cell sources in theater.
Red blood cells are the most transfused blood product in battlefield trauma care. Unfortunately, they are sometimes in limited supply in a battlefield environment. DARPA's Blood Pharming program seeks to create an automated culture and packaging system that will yield a fresh supply of universal donor red blood cells from progenitor cell sources in theater. The Blood Pharming program is developing novel technologies to enable in vitro production of red blood cells that are untainted, readily available, and free of storage lesions. The ultimate program goal is to use human progenitor cells as a starting material to develop an automated, fieldable cell culture and packaging system capable of producing transfusable amounts of universal donor red blood cells. If this program is successful, there will be no difference between red blood cells inside the human body and those developed in the lab.