Objectives
To date, there is no device for the effective removal of fp-Hb from the blood. An ideal device should specifically bind Hb dimers and tetramers in high quantities and without any interaction with other plasma components. To design a device with such specificity (and high load capacity), we will draw inspiration from a strategy exploited by bacteria to capture the iron present within hemoglobin when they infect humans. In fact, several pathogens exploit iron, which is a fundamental nutr...
State of Art
Hemolysis is the abnormal breakdown of red blood cells (RBCs) resulting in the release of hemoglobin contained in them as free plasma hemoglobin (fp-Hb). This phenomenon entails an important clinical risk triggered by various causal agents and the growing number of acquired and iatrogenic hemolytic disorders invites us to consider hemolysis as a new mechanism of disease onset.
Hemoglobin within red blood cells is a tetramer, but during hemolysis it tends to form dimers. An equilibrium...
