ôDeveloping Innovative Storage Solutions to Preserve Younger Red Blood Cells (RBC) for Longer

Developing innovative elixir to preserve younger red blood cells (RBCs) for longeráProblem Statement: The Department of the Air Force (DAF) and civilian medical sectors rely on the transfusion of red blood cells (RBCs) and plasma as life-saving treatments. However, stored RBCs undergo significant biochemical and physical changes during storage, leading to rapid degradation and expiration within approximately six weeks. This short shelf life exacerbates the critical blood shortages faced by the United States and globally, particularly in high-demand situations such as military deployments and mass casualty events.áMIDOĺs Technical Solution: Leveraging its established technical platform, Modeling informed design and optimization (MIDO) aims to develop and test an innovative elixir capable of extending the preservation of younger RBCs. The solution integrates cutting-edge computational techniques, utilizing "digital twins" to monitor and predict the dynamic changes in stored RBCs over time. By applying artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) algorithms, MIDO will design optimized formulations of the "youth fountain" elixir. These formulations are specifically tailored to preserve the viability and functionality of younger RBCs over extended periods.áExpected Deliverables: MIDOĺs platform will deliver data-driven recipes for an innovative elixir, along with validated predictions from its digital twin models. These efforts are expected to significantly prolong the storage lifespan of RBCs, providing a transformative solution for improving blood availability and reducing wastage in both military and civilian contexts.á