Temple University

Clara Fronticelli

William S Brinigar

The functional characteristics of heme proteins can be modified to produce hemoglobins that can be used as blood substitutes in different therapeutic applications. Stable polymers of tetrameric hemoglobin, and of myoglobin molecules, are provided for use in the blood substitutes.

Blood substitutes

Human &bgr;-globin mutant polypeptides comprise the amino acid sequence of normal human &bgr;-globin modified by (i) the substitution or deletion of Cys at amino acid positions 93 and 112, and (ii) the substitution of a Cys fore a non-Cys amino acid at one other position in the polypeptide, preferable Ser at amino acid position 9. Modified human hemoglobins containing this or other &bgr;-globin mutations, and/or an &agr;-globin mutation, are provided, as well as polymers of such modified hemoglobins. Nucleic acids, vectors, and transformed host cells for producing the &bgr;-globin mutants are provided.

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Timonium, MD, United States of America

Clara Fronticelli