Extended storage of AS-1 and AS-3 leukoreduced red blood cells for 15 days after deglycerolization and resuspension in AS-3 using an automated closed system.

BACKGROUND: The utilization of cryopreserved red blood cell (RBC) units had been limited by a maximum postdeglycerolization storage of 24 hours at 1 to 6 degrees C until the recent development of a closed system for the glycerolization and deglycerolization process. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Sixty leukoreduced additive solution (AS), AS-1 (n = 30) and AS-3 (n = 30) RBC units from 500-mL whole blood (WB) collections were stored for 6 days, glycerolized, frozen at -70 +/- 5 degrees C for at least 14 days, thawed, deglycerolized, and stored for 15 days at 1 to 6 degrees C. Glycerolization and deglycerolization were performed with the ACP 215. In-vitro variables were tested before glycerolization, on Day 0, and Day 15 after deglycerolization storage. Forty donors were assessed for double-label 24-hour percent recovery, and T1/2 survival time was measured for 20 donors. RESULTS: Postdeglycerolization mean +/- standard deviation in-vitro RBC mass recoveries were 93 +/- 5 percent for AS-1 and 95 +/- 4 percent for AS-3. Mean hemoglobin +/- standard deviation after deglycerolization was 50.5 +/- 5.5g for AS-1 and 50.1 +/- 3.5g for AS-3. Mean hemolysis (Day 15) was 0.36 +/- 0.11 percent for AS-1 and 0.38 +/- 0.13 percent for AS-3. Double-label 24-hour in-vivo recoveries were 82.5 +/- 7.8 percent for AS-1 and 81.4 +/- 7.1 percent for AS-3. The 51Cr T1/2 value was 41.8 +/- 3.97 for AS-1 and 40.6 +/- 7.11 for AS-3. Other in-vitro variables were as expected. CONCLUSION: Leukoreduced AS-1 and AS-3 RBCs after frozen storage at -70 +/- 5 degrees C can be stored for up to 14 days when processing is performed with the ACP 215 system with resuspension of deglycerolized RBCs in AS-3.

Conventional tube agglutination with polyethylene glycol versus Red Cell Affinity Column Technology (ReACT): a comparison of antibody detection methods.

A procedure for antibody detection and identification that utilizes affinity microcolumns to isolate IgG antibodies in a gel matrix containing Protein G and Protein A was commercially available in recent years. We evaluated this method (ReACT, Red Cell Affinity Column Technology, Immucor Co., Norcross, GA) as an alternative to standard tube agglutination testing, in an effort to minimize subjectivity and increase consistency of antibody identification in our hospital blood banks. Although the ReACT kit was withdrawn from the market soon after completion of our study, the advantages and limitations of the procedure warrant consideration should a similar product be reintroduced. The performance of the ReACT method was compared to conventional antibody detection by a standard tube agglutination technique that uses polyethylene glycol (PEG) potentiator (Dominion Biologicals Ltd., Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada). Of 685 serum or plasma samples that were screened for antibodies, 96 samples were found by the PEG procedure to contain clinically significant (n = 70) and insignificant antibodies (n = 26). In contrast, 48 of the samples were found by the ReACT procedure to contain clinically significant (n = 39) and clinically insignificant antibodies (n = 9). For the ReACT method, the sensitivity was 48.8% (95% CI = 37.8%, 58.0%) and the specificity was 99.6% (95% CI = 97.5%, 99.9%), compared to the PEG procedure. While the ReACT microcolumn system was designed to limit detection of clinically insignificant antibodies, this study documents a loss of sensitivity for detection of clinically significant antibodies.