Immune safety evaluation of polymerized porcine hemoglobin (pPolyHb): a potential red blood cell substitute.

Polymerized Porcine Hemoglobin (pPolyHb), a hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier (HBOC), was developed as a potential red blood substitute for clinical applications. Assessment of its effects on the immune system is an important component of the overall safety evaluation of HBOC. For this purpose, we assessed three inflammation indicators, including complement C3a, IL-6, and TNF-? in cultured cells and in a rat model when pPolyHb was incubated or administrated with the cells/animals. Our results suggested that the levels of these three indicators were not statistically changed upon pPolyHb stimulation, indicating that pPolyHb is not immunotoxic to cells and animals in this aspect.