Humanity’s quest to filter blood in patients with ongoing sepsis has no limits. All previous attempts have failed. But here’s an update on the technology we covered last year, when we reported about a new device developed at Harvard’s Wyss Institute that filters pathogens from whole blood. It was designed to fight sepsis and the underlying technology worked thanks to a proprietary genetically engineered protein called FcMBL that sticks to all kinds of viruses, fungi, bacteria, as well as the toxins they excrete. Millions of these proteins were attached to magnetic beads and the compounds injected into blood. The blood is then extracted and passed through a machine that used a magnet to draw the beads along with the FcMBL proteins and any toxins or pathogens on them.

Now the team has gotten rid of the idea of injecting the magnetic beads, which makes it considerably safer and easier to get through regulatory approval. Instead, blood is passed through filters used in dialysis machines with the FcMBL protein attached to the filters. These filters are already FDA approved for dialysis and in studies with small animals the technology removed 99% of E. coli and S. aureus from whole blood. Now they’ll try it with large animals before trying out on humans.

Here’s a Wyss Institute video about the technology:

Flashback: Artificial Biospleen Cleans Blood with Magnets (VIDEO)…

Study in journal Biomaterials: Improved treatment of systemic blood infections using antibiotics with extracorporeal opsonin hemoadsorption…

Source: Wyss Institute…

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SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Satellite Healthcare, a leading national not-for-profit provider of dialysis services, is thrilled to announce that patient Gustavo Herrera Castaneda will be honored for undergoing more than 30 years of dialysis during his life-long battle with kidney disease on Saturday, August 22, 2015, at a Western Pacific Renal Network event taking place in Burlingame, California.

“It’s been quite the journey since first being diagnosed with chronic kidney disease in 1969,” Castaneda said. With the exception of a kidney transplant that lasted nearly three years, Castaneda has undergone dialysis for more than three decades as part of that journey.

Castaneda, who has been receiving personalized care and training for home hemo dialysis treatment for more than 10 years at Satellite WellBound of Modesto, suffers from End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). "WellBound of Modesto has provided the knowledge and support on how to become independent while having kidney disease,” Castaneda said.

Patients suffering from ESRD have complete and irreversible kidney failure, and cannot live without dialysis or a transplant. The average life expectancy for ESRD patients on dialysis is five to 10 years, but many patients can live a quality life while being on dialysis for more than 20 years. "Dialysis itself allows us patients to enjoy our time with family and friends,” Castaneda said.

Managing ESRD can be challenging and requires multiple treatments every week for those receiving dialysis. Castaneda is an inspiration for patients who feel overwhelmed or daunted by the life changes needed to address kidney failure.

Currently, more than 26 million people in the U.S. have Chronic Kidney Disease, which can be a precursor to ESRD.

Western Pacific Renal Network, a not-for-profit that contracts with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to bring ESRD programs to its geographic territory, has created an elite group called the Platinum Partners that is made up of people who have been living with ESRD for more than a quarter of a century.

Castaneda, along with other members of Platinum Partners, will be celebrated at the network’s event for their efforts to choose life and take control of their disease.

About Satellite Healthcare:

Satellite Healthcare, Inc., has been among the nation's leading not-for-profit providers of kidney dialysis and related services since 1974. Through its affiliated services, Satellite WellBound, Satellite Dialysis, and Satellite Research, Satellite Healthcare provides unparalleled early patient wellness education, personalized clinical services and a complete range of dialysis therapy choices. In addition, Satellite Healthcare has a well-recognized, enduring commitment to philanthropy and community service, from funding millions of dollars in research grants to sponsoring kidney walks nationwide. Satellite is committed to advancing the standard of chronic kidney disease care so patients can enjoy a better life.

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