- A new study shows Terumo BCT's Mirasol Pathogen Reduction Technology (PRT) System is effective against the virus that causes COVID-19 when high virus levels are present in human plasma and platelets.
- Mirasol is used to treat convalescent plasma for COVID-19 patients in some parts of the world.1
- The pathogen reduction system is designed to add an extra layer of safety to the blood supply.
LAKEWOOD, COLO., U.S.A. – Data from a new study suggests that a medical device that uses vitamin B2 and ultraviolet light for treating human blood products is effective against the virus that causes COVID-19. The study results, generated by Terumo BCT in collaboration with top researchers from Colorado State University, have been accepted for publication by Vox Sanguinis, a peer-reviewed medical journal covering hematology.
Convalescent Plasma & Mirasol
Blood is considered vital medicine, and it is the backbone of the healthcare system. While there is no evidence that blood transfusions transmit COVID-19, some blood centers are using Mirasol to treat platelets and plasma as an additional layer of safety.
In some parts of the world, healthcare providers also treat convalescent plasma with Mirasol. The International Society for Blood Transfusion (ISBT) Global Blood Safety Working Party recommends, where feasible, pathogen inactivation of plasma to control residual risks of transfusion-transmitted infectious diseases and to ally concern about possible superinfections with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.2
Using riboflavin (vitamin B2) and ultraviolet light, Mirasol is designed to reduce the pathogen load of various disease-causing agents such as viruses, parasites and bacteria in blood products before they are transfused to patients. Mirasol also inactivates white blood cells to help reduce certain transfusion reactions.
"Mirasol is one of the tools we are using to help equip healthcare providers in their fight against COVID-19," says Antoinette Gawin, President and Chief Executive Officer, Terumo BCT. "We are deploying our existing innovations to benefit as many patients as possible."
Mirasol is CE marked for platelets, plasma and whole blood and is in routine use in more than 20 countries throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Latin America. The system is not approved for sale in the U.S. and Canada.
There are no approved devices or therapies for specific treatment of COVID-19.
About Terumo BCT
Terumo BCT, a global leader in blood component, therapeutic apheresis and cellular therapy technologies, is the only company with the unique combination of apheresis collections, manual and automated whole blood processing, and pathogen reduction technologies. We believe in the potential of blood and cells to do even more for patients than they do today. This belief inspires our innovation and strengthens our collaboration with customers. TERUMOBCT.com
About Colorado State University
Founded in 1870 as the Colorado Agricultural College, Colorado State University is now among the nation's leading research universities, with annual research expenditures of nearly $400 million. The CSU System includes the flagship campus in Fort Collins as well as CSU- Pueblo and CSU-Global. In Fort Collins, CSU currently enrolls about 33,000 students, including 4,000 graduate students and 580 in the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program, and has more than 1,800 faculty members working in eight colleges. CSU's DVM program consistently ranks among the top three veterinary medicine programs in the nation.
About the Infectious Disease Research Center at Colorado State University
Colorado State University's Infectious Disease Research Center provides a high quality research environment for developing new scientific discoveries, vaccines, methods of diagnosis and therapeutic agents for infectious agents. CSU is among the world's leaders in researching West Nile virus, drug-resistant tuberculosis, yellow fever, dengue, hantavirus, plague, tularemia and other diseases. The IDRC contains the Bio-pharmaceutical Manufacturing & Academic Resource Center (BioMARC) which is a fully functional BSL3 GMP facility that works across government, foundations, industry and academic partners to scale innovations in infectious disease. In addition, the IDRC contains a national node in the biocontainment regional laboratory network, with over 50,000 square feet of BSL3 research space for projects executed at CSU and in partnership with many others.
Download photos and B-roll of Mirasol here.
Global Terumo BCT Mirasol Support
MirasolPRT@terumobct.com
1 Study funded by Terumo BCT and conducted at Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colo. Authors: From Terumo BCT: Shawn D. Keil, Susan Yonemura and Nicole K. Dart. From CSU's Department of Biomedical Sciences, Fort Collins, Colo., Izabela Ragan and Richard Bowen. From CSU's Infectious Disease Research Center, Fort Collins, Colo. Lindsay Hartson.
2Jay Epstein and Thierry Burnouf, on behalf of the ISBT Working Party on Global Blood Safety. Points to consider in the preparation and transfusion of COVID-19 convalescent plasma. https://isbtweb.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Points_to_consider_in_the_preparation_of_COVID_convalescent_plasma_-_200331_ISBT_WP_GBS_Final.pdf