Optimizing the lyophilization of erythrocruorin.

Haemorrhagic shock is a leading cause of death worldwide. Blood transfusions can be used to treat patients suffering severe blood loss but donated red blood cells (RBCs) have several limitations that limit their availability and use. To solve the problems associated with donated RBCs, several acellular haemoglobin-based oxygen carriers (HBOCs) have been developed to restore the most important function of blood: oxygen transport.

Investigation of Potential Drug Targets Involved in Inflammation Contributing to Alzheimer's Disease Progression.

Alzheimer's disease has become a major public health issue. While extensive research has been conducted in the last few decades, few drugs have been approved by the FDA to treat Alzheimer's disease. There is still an urgent need for understanding the disease pathogenesis, as well as identifying new drug targets for further drug discovery.

Sequencing of the Lumbricus terrestris genome reveals degeneracy in its erythrocruorin genes.

The erythrocruorin of Lumbricus terrestris (LtEc) is a relatively large macromolecular assembly that consists of at least four different hemoglobin subunits (A, B, C, and D) and four linker subunits (L1, L2, L3, and L4). The complexity and stability of this large structure make LtEc an attractive hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier that could potentially be used as a substitute for donated red blood cells. However, the sequences of the LtEc subunit sequences must be determined before a scalable recombinant expression platform can be developed.