A company based in Brittany has developed an oxygenation protocol using a sea worm. The goal? Help intensive care units that are running out of artificial respirators and thus save more lives.
Discovered in the 18th century by Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus, the Arenicola marina worm is at the origin of the twists sometimes visible on the beaches. Able to breathe underground, this worm was the subject of research carried out by the Hemarina company, based in Morlaix in Finistère. The fact is that the worm can bind up to 40 times more oxygen on its hemoglobin molecules than the human being!
Frank Zal is a doctor in marine biology and founder of Hemarina. The latter indicated that he had developed a new oxygenation protocol based on the blood of the famous worm. Specifically, it is a universal oxygen carrier called Hemo2Life . This device was proposed to the Ministry of Health as part of the fight against the Covid-19 coronavirus epidemic. The person concerned indicates that he has enough to treat no less than 5,000 patients and says he is ready to increase production in order to treat 30,000 patients if necessary.
The health system is finding it increasingly difficult to cope with the influx of patients. Indeed, the intensive care units are overwhelmed. They lack artificial respirators and personnel capable of putting them in place. However, Hemarina faces constraints , as Le Journal des Entreprises explains in an article published on March 18, 2020. The molecule developed by Hemarina has not yet received marketing authorization. In the "full health war", it is difficult to understand why this innovation is not supported. Remember that on March 21, 2020, France has more than 12,500 cases of coronavirus for 450 deaths.
Originally, the Hemo2Life Universal Oxygen Carrier was designed for various applications. This involves, for example, preserving grafts but also serving in immunotherapy. Indeed, it is a question of increasing the production yields of monoclonal antibodies and thus reducing the costs associated with cancer treatments. The molecule can also be used to replace porcine or bovine hemoglobin used in virtually all fermentation processes in food products.
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