Active hemoglobin with highest ability to transport oxygen for application in laboratory reagents (cell culture), cosmetics, medical devices, wound healing and pharmaceuticals

The product is a novel hemoglobin complex for use as an oxygen carrier in the human blood originally developed by a leading German research institute. At present a consortium of an Austrian and a German small scale enterprise owns the technology and is further developing the hemoglobin complex. Both companies are specialized in the worldwide sourcing and development of biological raw materials. 1) State of the art: Hemoglobin is an iron-containing oxygen-transport metalloprotein in the red blood cells of all vertebrates which carries oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body. Hemoglobin as an oxygen carrier is therefore essential to preserve organic tissue in various biotechnological and medical applications on living organisms (in vivo) and in test tubes (in vitro). Hemoglobin derived from human blood donations is a rare commodity and not available in sufficient amount. However, hemoglobin can also be isolated from an abundant and low cost source – bovine blood. There are many commercially available bovine hemoglobins but none is acceptable with regard to purity, safety or functionality. Commercially available hemoglobins exhibit a high content (50-100 %) of oxidized hemoglobin (methemoglobin), which is not able to effectively transport oxygen. For this reason the currently available hemoglobin products cannot be used in applications or as a starting material for products that depend on the oxygen carrying capacity of hemoglobin. The market needs a new type of hemoglobin suitable to work as a potent oxygen carrier. 2) Description of the technology: The active hemoglobin complex is manufactured from calves red blood cells sourced in Tyrol, Austria - a region free of most notifiable bovine diseases as well as BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy). It has been harvested from locally and organically raised animals with proven traceability and carefully monitored health records. The red blood cells are lysed and the hemoglobin is then obtained via centrifugation and filtration steps. Several virus inactivation methods can be applied as required. The technology is transferable to any geographical region and can be adapted to the specific manufacturing environment. 3) Application Areas: The product was originally developed for the manufacturing of multi-hemoglobin complexes with advantageous properties. Besides the application as an oxygen carrier in the human body, it can be used in many more areas such as: - Human erythrocytes replacement in perfusion media - Active ingredient in wound bandages or wound healing creams / gels (especially for chronic wounds) - Universal cell culture additive for better oxygenation, growth and performance – suitable for all cell types - Ingredient/stabilizer for 3D hydrogels to improve 3D cell culture growth and oxygenation - Ingredient for biological coating of cell culture plastics - Regenerative medicine applications - contributing to joints healing and for a better cartilage recovery - Cosmetic applications like combatting hair loss, preventing cellulite, skin improvement - In any other areas where an improved oxygen supply is required The application research and development of the manufacturing technology has been funded by the European program EUROSTARS. An industrial production scale-up is currently under development. 4) Partner sought: The developers are looking for companies and/or research organizations who need specific oxygen carriers or are interested in adopting the specific technology in their manufacturing environment – in the form of a technical cooperation, commercial or license agreements.