Researchers at Red Cross Flanders has developed an innovative method to produce growth serum from human blood platelets. The technique ensures that expired platelets are not lost and animal suffering is avoided.
Each year, Red Cross Flanders collects around 35,000 platelet concentrates. As these can only be stored for five days, 3 to 5 per cent of them are destroyed. The organisation has now developed a biotech product that can make use of these ‘expired’ platelets.
Thanks to the new technique, the expired platelets can be used to develop growth serum. This is an important starting product for the development of vaccines or in cell and genetic engineering.
Animal cruelty
“Currently, foetal calf serum is often used for this purpose, but the way it is obtained is not animal-friendly,” says professor Hendrik Feys, director of Scientific Research at Red Cross Flanders. To obtain fetal calf serum, approximately 1.5-2 million pregnant cows are slaughtered in South America each year, and the serum is extracted from the calf’s heart.
In addition, this serum can contain viruses and is foreign to the body, which poses risks, says Feys. “With the new development, the serum remains in the pharmaceutical industry and not in the meat industry. We will not only export the serum itself, but also the process of developing it.”
“We will not only export the serum itself, but also the process of developing it”
Red Cross Flanders can currently develop about 200 litres of growth serum from the expired platelets, but they intend to increase this amount by further developing the technique. The new growth serum can be stored frozen for two years.
“Flanders is at the forefront of biotechnology and animal welfare, and this innovation combines both,” said Flemish Animal Welfare minister Ben Weyts during a visit to the lab on Thursday. “As a government, we want to create a climate in Flanders that makes this kind of research possible.”
