How potassium ferric oxalate nanoparticles prevent blood clots. Credit: Yenurkar, D. et al.
Biomedical engineers at the Indian Institute of Technology Varanasi, in Uttar Pradesh, have synthesised inexpensive, complex nanoparticles that can prevent clotting in mice and human blood1.
The researchers say the nanoparticles can preserve human blood in a liquid state for 48 hours. This property, they say, could potentially be harnessed to safely collect and store blood for diagnosis and transfusion.
The scientists, led by Sudip Mukherjee, produced the nanoparticles using ferric sulphate, potassium oxalate, various reagents, and an organic stabilising agent.
In live mice, the nanoparticles prevented clot formation in blood vessels, without accumulating in organs and deforming blood cells. The particles also halted thrombosis in mice at a low dose.
Potassium oxalate, one of the components of the nanoparticles, binds to calcium ions in blood and prevents the formation of fibrin, the main protein that helps form blood clots.
The nanoparticles easily dissolve in water and act quickly without being deposited in fat tissues. Blood flowed better and fewer proteins stuck to the surface of nanoparticle-coated catheters.
“For people with thrombotic disorders, the nanoparticles could be a safer and more efficient alternative to existing anticoagulants that cause bleeding and bone damage,” says Mukherjee.
