Eun Jung Baek

BACKGROUND: There is no appropriate alternative source of red blood cells (RBCs) to relieve the worsening shortage of blood available for transfusion. Therefore, in vitro generation of clinically available RBCs from hematopoietic stem cells could be a promising new source to supplement the blood supply. However, there have been few studies about the generation of clinical-grade RBCs by coculture on human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and various cytokine supplements, even though the production o

BACKGROUND: In vitro generation of red blood cells (RBCs) is an important alternative to donor RBCs. It was impossible, however, to generate a large quantity of RBCs due to necessity of supporting stromal cells or xenogeneic or human serum for in vitro culture, which had restrictions in safety, supplies, and expenses. In addition, the low viability of erythroblasts during terminal maturation in vitro required highly efficient production protocols. Here, we present a protocol for mass production

Stem cell-derived erythroid cells hold great potential for the treatment of blood-loss anemia and for erythropoiesis research; however, cultures using conventional flat plates or bioreactors have failed to show promising results. By mimicking the in vivo bone marrow (BM) environment in which most erythroid cells are physically aggregated, we show that a three-dimensional (3D) aggregate culture system facilitates erythroid cell maturation and red blood cell (RBC) production more effectively than

Recent advances in gene editing technologies using CRISPR/ Cas9 allow precise genome editing at a site of interest and have accelerated human disease modeling and the development of corrective gene therapies for various genetic disorders. We adapted CRISPR/Cas9 editing of rhesus macaque (RM) hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) to create the first engineered large animal model of a hematologic disease based on close phylogenetic/functional similarity of RM to human HSPCs.

BACKGROUND: Dendritic cells (DCs), used in clinical trials for cancer immunotherapy, require processing on an expanded scale to conform to current good manufacturing practice guidelines. This study evaluated a large-scale monocyte enrichment procedure with a commercially available cell separator (Elutra, Gambro BCT) and analyzed the capacity of enriched monocytes to differentiate into DCs. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Mononuclear cells were collected in two patients with malignant melanoma and seve

In vitro generation of artificial red blood cells (RBCs) is very important to overcome insufficient and unsafe blood supply. Despite recent progresses in RBCs engineering from several stem cell sources, none of them could succeed in generation of functional RBCs in the absence of serum/plasma and feeder cells. Without the elimination of serum and plasma, human RBC engineering in a large scale is impossible, especially for the future bioreactor system. Using an appropriate combination of cost-eff

Abstract The aim of this study was to develop a robust, quality controlled, and reproducible erythroid culture system to obtain high numbers of mature erythroblasts and red blood cells (RBCs). This was achieved using a fully controlled stirred‐tank bioreactor by the design of experiments (DOE) methods in the serum‐free medium by defining the appropriate culture parameters. Human cord blood CD34+ cells were first cultured in static flasks and then inoculated to stirred‐tank bioreactors. Cell diam

Enucleation of erythroblasts, a critical step in the generation of red blood cells (RBCs), occurs at a low rate without cocultured stromal cells. Previously, the surface properties of the cell culture plate were not considered in the enucleation process, because the cells exist in suspension. Here, we show that a significantly higher rate of enucleation of erythroblasts occurred on the positively charged plates than on the negatively charged surfaces or the both negatively and positively charged

Whereas Jk(b)-related haemolytic disease of the newborn (HDN) is relatively common, HDN due to anti-Jk(a) is very rare, with the total number of cases with complete laboratory findings being just three.1 Moreover, case reports that occurred in Asia are even rarer due to the low Jk(a) allelic frequency.2 Therefore, we were unable to find any data about how long the antibody would persist, when the haemolysis would resolve or how long we should follow-up after discharge. Although it is clear that

Background: The recent trends for blood collection and the blood supply were analyzed. Methods: Data from the annual reports of the Korean Red Cross from 2002 to 2006 were analyzed. Results: The number of donors in 2002∼2003 was about 2,530,000, but this decreased to 2,300,000 in the past 3 years with the population's donation rate being 4.7%. By age, those donors between 16∼29 years made up 83% of all the donors. As donor verification became possible in real-time, blood collection from the regi

Gelsolin is an actin binding protein present in blood plasma and in cytoplasm of cells including macrophages. Gelsolin has important functions in cell cycle regulation, apoptotic regulation, and morphogenesis. Even though bone marrow macrophages and serum factors are critical for regulating erythropoiesis, the role of gelsolin on human erythroblasts has not been studied. Here, we investigated the effects of human recombinant plasma gelsolin (pGSN) on human immature erythroblasts. CD34+ cells iso

Simultaneous drug-induced immune hemolytic anemia (DIIHA) caused by multiple drugs is rare. We report a case of a patient who developed DIIHA caused by 2 drugs. The patient's serum exhibited agglutination of ceftizoxime- or sulbactam-coated red blood cells (RBCs; via a drug-adsorption mechanism) and of uncoated RBCs in the presence of sulbactam (via an immune-complex mechanism). Although ceftizoxime is known to exhibit a positive reaction by an immune-complex method with or without reactivity wi

Gelsolin, an actin-remodeling protein, is involved in cell motility, cytoskeletal remodeling, and cytokinesis and is abnormally expressed in many cancers. Recently, human recombinant plasma gelsolin protein (pGSN) was reported to have important roles in cell cycle and maturation of primary erythroblasts. However, the role of human plasma gelsolin in late stage erythroblasts prior to enucleation and putative clinical relevance in patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and hemato-oncologic d