Certain processes used to sterilise blood products could potentially cause serious health issues in transfusion recipients. [s]Science Daily[/s] reports that this is according to an international study led by Dr Patrick Provost of [b]Université Laval's Faculty of Medicine[/b] and the [b]CHU de Québec Research Centre[/b], which found that these processes purportedly alter the blood platelets to the extent of preventing them from carrying out their functions correctly and may be the cause of haemorrhages observed in patients having received treated blood. Provost and his colleagues discovered that these treatments activate blood platelets, triggering the release of RNA. ‘The platelets end up depleted of RNA so, once transfused, they're unable to do what they normally would,’ says the researcher. The report says the treatments are already on the market in some European countries, and manufacturers are trying to get approval in others.
[link url=http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140612104948.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_health+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Health+News%29]Full Science Daily report[/link]
[link url=http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/09537104.2014.898178]Platelets abstract[/link]