New strategies for the control of infectious and parasitic diseases in blood donors: the impact of pathogen inactivation methods

Platelet lysate: a promising candidate in regenerative medicine

Human platelet lysate has attracted much interest from many researchers as it is growth-factor rich for cell expansion, which is employed as a new therapeutic strategy. Not only are human platelet lysates used for cell therapy, but they are also used for the completion of basal media in mesenchymal stem cell cultures. Due to the presence of a large number of growth factors, platelet lysates have potential roles in wound healing, treatment of ocular graft-versus-host disease, osteoarthritis, Parkinson's disease, tendon regeneration, infertility, androgenetic alopecia, nerve repair and regenerative tissue, such as bone regeneration. In this review, we summarize that platelet lysates could be valuable candidates for the treatment of a variety of diseases in regenerative medicine.

Screening of at-risk blood donors for Chagas disease in non-endemic countries: Lessons from a 2-year experience in Tuscany, Italy

Background

Chagas disease (CD) is caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi and is transmitted by blood‐sucking triatomine insects in endemic areas of Latin America. Transmission can also occur via blood transfusion and is a major cause of CD in non‐endemic areas.

Objectives

The aim of the study was to assess the prevalence of anti‐T. cruzi antibodies in blood donors at risk of infection in Tuscany, Italy, following the introduction of blood safety Italian legislation.

Material and methods

Donors (N = 1985) were tested in 2016 to 2018 for anti‐T. cruzi IgG using an immunochromatographic test (ICT). Chemiluminescent immunoassay (CLIA) was performed on ICT‐positive donors to exclude CD, whereas enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay and western blot were performed in case of discordant results. All assays were performed on CD patients (N = 10) for validation.

Results

Ten blood donors had a positive ICT result, with a resulting T. cruzi seroprevalence of 0.5% but demonstrated negative results to CLIA, as well as to the other serological assays. The comparison of serological assays suggested a lower relative sensitivity of ICT.

Conclusion

The results of this study confirm the significance of serological testing in the screening strategy for CD. However, they provide evidence for discontinuing the use of ICT as a screening test and suggest that a sensitive, specific and multi‐sample format assay should be used at the national level for uniformity of results.