albimum a bood bi product ?

I believe you will benefit by viewing Dr. Leo Orr's Discussion on Blood Fractions in this part 5 of a 5 part Seminar on Bloodless Medicine and Transfusion Free Surgery Techniques:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cidNFoW9yn0"]YouTube - Bloodless Medicine Seminar - Blood Fractions[/ame]

You will also no doubt find our Blood Fractions Guide very informative.

__________________
Larry Eitel
Webmaster

Click here and see who are advancing transfusion alternatives and blood management.

Can you spare a cup of coffee? Click here.
Thank you.

Good informative video. Answered many questions I have. Thanks.

After reviewing the Blood Fractions Guide on the subject it states
“Interferon alfa-n3 is the only leukocyte-derived (white blood cell-derived) product that is in clinical use.”
Since interferons are derived from the white cell (white cells are a fraction of whole blood) then are interferons considered a blood fraction?


Thanks
Kellie

Yes that's right, they are proteins are produced by white blood cells and they can be separated by a fractionation process.

The brand name of this particular product you referred to is Alferon N, and yes, since it is derived from human leukocytes (white blood cells), it would be considered a minor blood fraction. But, not all interferon medications are considered as blood fractions. Some are produced by recombinant technology, and may be the preferred choice for a patient wanting to avoid all blood derived medications.

Unfortunately, medical personnel don't always realize exactly what is in a medication, so the responsibility falls to the patient to make sure that, if there is ever a question about a medication, ask questions, and have folks double check. It's great to see that you are taking a proactive approach to educating yourself about the options available.

If interferons have been synthesized using recombinant DNA technology are any blood fractions used in the process? If so, what blood fractions?

Thanks
Kellie

The entire process involves removing specific genes (ieNA) from a donor organism, and inserting this genetic material into the DNA of a host organism, usually a bacteria or virus cell. The whole process is pretty amazing. There is quite a bit more detailed information on the internet...there is also a brief video on YouTube of how the process works if you are interest. I didn't realize it, but one of the first recombinant DNA medications produced was Human Insulin back in the 1970's. Prior to that time, all insulin used was derived from the pig pancreas.

But, to answer your question, while there are no blood fractions involved in the recombinant DNA process, there may be a blood fraction added to the final medication produced. Usually, this will be a small amount of albumin (a protein produced by the liver, but extracted from donated blood). The albumin is used as a stabilizing agent. Not all recombinant products have albumin added, so you will need to ask.