Artificial spleen as therapy for sepsis

Artificial spleen as therapy for sepsis?

09/15/2014

A newly developed artificial spleen is said to help with sepsis. Sepsis (Greek = putrefaction), colloquially known as blood poisoning, is the third most common cause of death, affecting every year in Germany 180,000 people. Often, sepsis forms after major surgery or pneumonia and depends on how well the immune system works. In intensive care units, it is even the leading cause of death.

The afflicted body experiences an invasion of pathogens that almost flood the body. This causes inflammation, which the body wants to ward off with all its strength. Through organ swelling breaks the circulation and thus the entire organism in a state of shock. At the same time the blood coagulates so much that the veins almost clog.

New innovation for treatment
A novel method from the US could provide rapid help in the event of blood poisoning. It is a medical device that takes over the function of the spleen and uses nanoparticles to cleanse the blood from the pathogens.

In principle, the procedure is similar to dialysis and can also be used against cancer and autoimmune diseases. In the trade magazine „Nature Medicin“ It describes that the new method using magnetic beads up to 90% of the pathogens from the blood can filter. The procedure was tested by Donald E. Ingber and his team at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, with a 90% cure rate on rats already infected with a lethal dose.

Over 18 million affected by sepsis worldwide
Worldwide, 18 million people are suffering the fate of sepsis. In the case of blood poisoning, bacteria, viruses, fungi or their toxins trigger this disease. Sepsis is classified as a very serious disease and despite the most modern therapy, the death rate is even in intensive care units at 30-50%. Because of this fact, the artificial spleen was developed. Clinically, the patient is connected to an external bloodstream. The infected blood flows through a tube, while tiny magnetic beads of 128 millionths of a millimeter diameter are added and distributed by a mixing process.

Nanospheres with protein coating as a tool
This nano-tool is coated with a protein shell, which binds to the carbohydrates in the blood and thus can draw a very large amount of pathogens from the blood. Via tiny channels, the infected blood within the artificial spleen is connected to a second circuit containing saline solution. With the aid of a magnet, the artificial spleen now pulls the pathogens attached to the spheres out of the blood. The cleaned blood is passed back into the treated person. This process can be repeated if necessary.

In acute sepsis, a quick diagnosis and therapy is an important decision, often there is no time to find the right antibiotic. The artificial spleen has the advantage that it strikes faster and more effective than the conventional treatment with antibiotics, because it directly removes the toxins and even antibiotic-resistant germs from the blood. The device has a running time of 1.25 l / h.

New chances of healing against cancer?
The research assumes that the process also different cell types can be retrieved from the blood. For this purpose, the nanospheres should be treated with the appropriate receptors to which the respective pathogens such. Can dock cancer cells. The procedure could be groundbreaking for modern medicine in the future. (Bn)