Artificial blood : The “Holy grail” of blood research

Artificial blood created from stem cells could be tested on Britons within two years. Artificial blood is basic filler for the human cardiovascular system used in some medical procedures or to treat certain conditions. It is also known as blood surrogate or blood substitute, and although it does not act as a full substitute for blood, it does help to take up space and carry some important gases....!!!

There are two main categories of artificial blood :-# Oxygen therapeutics: For artificial blood that carries oxygen
# Volume expanders, for inert blood.

When severe trauma occurs, a serious danger is that blood volume will be reduced to a point where the remaining red blood cells can no longer oxygenate body tissue, which can result in tissue damage or death. Artificial blood solves this by acting as a volume expander, making up for the lost quantity of blood. Because real blood has a substantial capacity for carrying oxygen, so long as volume is retained, even a dilute ratio of real blood to artificial blood can be adequate to keep a person alive.
Heart transplant, bypass and cancer patients would also benefit from having a guaranteed supply of blood on hand for their surgery.The man-made blood would be free of infections that have blighted natural supplies and could be given to almost everyone regardless of blood group.