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Joan Stephenson, PhD

JAMA. 2007;297:2069.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Newly discovered bacterial enzymes can be used to convert types A, B, and AB blood into universal donor types O blood (Liu QP et al. Nat Biotechnol. 2007;25:454-464).

The idea of using enzymes to convert types A, B, and AB blood cells to type O by cleaving antigenic monosaccharides from red blood cells (RBCs) dates back to the early 1980s, when scientists found that a similar enzyme derived from coffee beans could remove B antigens from the cells. However, the process was too inefficient to be practical and attempts to strip cells of the A antigen were not successful.

In the new work, the researchers screened 2500 fungal and bacterial isolates and identified 2 gene families that encode enzymes capable of efficiently removing A and B antigens from RBCs under conditions that preserve the cells’ integrity and functions. If proven safe and effective in clinical trials, . . . [Full Text of this Article]