Production of Feline Universal Erythrocytes with Methoxy Polyethylene Glycol

• Published in: Journal of functional biomaterials Vol. 14; no. 9; p. 476
• Main Authors: Kim, Hyung Kyu, Ahn, Dan Bi, Jang, Han Byeol, Ma, Jing, Xing, Juping, Yoon, Joo Won, Lee, Kyung Hee, Lee, Dong Min, Kim, Chang Hyun, Kim, Hee Young
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 01.09.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Agglutination; Alloantibodies; Antibodies; Antigenic determinants; Antigens; Blood groups; Blood transfusion; Blood transfusions; Cats; Epitopes; Erythrocytes; feline; Fragility; Hemagglutination; Hemoglobin; Laboratory animals; Molecular weight; Monocytes; Morphology; mPEG; MPEG encoders; Polyethylene glycol; RBC; Transfusion; universal red blood cells; Variance analysis; Veterinary medicine; Viral antibodies; South Korea; United States > US; Japan
• ISSN: 2079-4983; 2079-4983
• DOI: 10.3390/jfb14090476

Blood group mismatch in veterinary medicine is a significant problem in blood transfusion, sometimes leading to severe transfusion reactions and even patient death. Blood groups vary from species to species and there are three known blood groups in cats: A, B and AB. While A-type cats are most common, there is a shortage of feline B-type blood groups in cats. By using methoxy polyethylene glycol (mPEG) to protect antigenic epitopes on red blood cells (RBCs), we aimed to find the optimal conditions for the production of feline universal RBCs. The surfaces of feline A-type RBCs were treated with mPEG at various molecular weights and concentrations. Agglutination tests showed that the coating of feline A-type RBCs with mPEG of 20 kDa and 2 mM blocked hemagglutination to feline anti-A alloantibodies over 8 h. While no differences in RBC size and shape between intact and mPEG-treated RBCs were seen, coating RBCs with mPEG inhibited the binding of feline anti-A alloantibodies. Furthermore, the mPEG-treated RBCs did not cause spontaneous hemolysis or osmotic fragility, compared to control RBCs. According to a monocyte monolayer assay, mPEG treatment significantly reduced feline anti-A antibody-mediated phagocystosis of RBCs. These results confirm the potential of using activated mPEG on feline A-type RBC to create universal erythrocytes for transfusion to B-type cats.