Synthetic Blood

From prosthetic limbs to artificial hearts, pacemakers to ear implants, we’ve figured out how to replace darn near every part of the human body. But until fairly recently, blood was a bit of a pipe dream. Not so anymore.

In 2017, England’s National Health Service (NHS) will conduct early safety trials, in which about 20 people are given small amounts of synthetic blood made from stem cells. The short-term goal is to create red blood cells to treat specific conditions and illnesses, like sickle cell anemia. The long-term goal? NHS scientists hope to make enough for transfusions for people with rarer blood types.