| 摘要 |
<p>A recombinant serum albumin is provided which has been modified in the heme binding region so as to have the ability when bound to heme to be capable of reversibly binding oxygen. The modifications are directed to replacing at least one of several hydrophobic binding residues in the natural heme binding region with a hydrophilic residue such as histidine or glutamine, or by inserting a histidine or glutamine into these regions, and the resulting recombinant heme-albumin complex, or hemalbumin, is able to reversibly transport oxygen in a manner not possible using natural albumin. The resulting oxygen-transporting recombinant hemalbumin compositions of the invention can be utilized as safe and effective blood replacement compositions, or in other applications such as preservation of organs for transplantation which presently use serum albumin, and these compositions will be advantageous because they can function both as blood volume expanders and as oxygen transport systems at the same time.</p> |
