New research publications: September 2025

October 6, 2025
Alex Williams

Each month, our R.E.D. blog showcases the activities of our research and education network and the innovation and collaboration that drives our scientific community forward. Included in these activities are the peer-reviewed publications in academic journals that are a main avenue for researchers to share their scientific findings. With a focus on methodology and a rigorous review process prior to publication, these publications are recognized as credible and reliable sources of scientific information. 

This blog – part of a reoccurring monthly recap – provides an overview of the latest research publications that have been authored by Canadian Blood Services staff scientists in discovery, development and donation policy & studies; adjunct scientists; medical experts and trainees; and/or resulting from supported projects or partnerships.  

Visit blood.ca to learn more about Our Research Team and to search our full publication database (updated annually). 

By the numbers

For the month of September, we are reporting a total of 10 peer-reviewed research articles indicated by research focus area:  

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Discovery (6): These publications include studies exploring how the liver regulates blood cell production and cholesterol, collaborative research on blood product quality, and a clinical case report related to transfusion safety and immune responses.

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Donation policy & studies (1): This publication assesses donor compliance with recent eligibility criteria changes, including the use of certain medications by donors.

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Other Canadian Blood Services affiliations (3): These publications include a case report, a review of global collaboration, and results of hospital audits on plasma use. 

Where we published 

Our research appeared in 7 journals, including Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Transfusion and Vox Sanguinis.

September Journals H Index impact
Figure 1: Total September publications represented by the publishing journals’ H-index number, where the chart area corresponds to each H-index value in descending order. 

Spotlight on select publications

  • Kupffer cells are essential for platelet-mediated thrombopoietin generation in the liver.

    This research provides evidence to show that Kupffer cells are a necessary part of the mechanism that mediates generation of the hormone thrombopoietin (TPO). Read more about this work in our recent blog post,
    Discovery research team publishes new findings on the intricacies of liver cells & platelets.

    Dr. Heyu Ni, Canadian Blood Services senior scientist
     
  • Plasma transfusion practice: A five-year audit of plasma transfusion at 23 hospitals.
    “This publication describes the largest plasma audit to date in Canada. Spanning five years and 23 hospitals, the analysis included 46,377 transfused plasma units. We identified wide variability in plasma utilization and pre-transfusion international normalized ratio (INR) thresholds across hospitals and physician specialties. We also identified that across all centres, the majority of plasma transfusions were under-dosed (84% 1-2 units). This work highlights the need for updated evidence-based guidelines and improved knowledge translation efforts to enhance appropriate plasma utilization.”

    Dr. Nadia Gabarin, Transfusion medicine specialist and former Canadian Blood Services trainee
     
  • Expression and purification of a broad-spectrum human protease inhibitor in Pichia pastoris.

    “Forty-five years ago, a mutation was discovered in a patient that changed the plasma protein alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT), from a neutrophil elastase inhibitor contributing to lung health, to a broad-spectrum inhibitor impacting the activity of multiple coagulation factors (AAT M358R). In previous work, we discovered how to make AAT M358R specific for coagulation factor XIa, an emerging therapeutic target, by introducing three additional mutations. We called this protein AAT-RC-2. Our next challenge was to scale up production of the two proteins for use in mouse models of clotting and bleeding.

    This study reports our comparison of bacterial, yeast, and human cell cultured expression systems. We found that a yeast system called Pichia pastoris was optimal for production of both proteins, with one molecular tweak for AAT M358R. Careful molecular detective work by Varsha Bhakta, the study’s first author, revealed that this tweak was necessary, otherwise AAT M358R jammed the yeast secretion machinery. Now we are using the learnings from this study to move ahead to test protein function in vivo.”

    Dr. William (Bill) Sheffield, Canadian Blood Services senior scientist and associate director of research

Our September publications list

Items in this list are identified using a process that relies on the PubMed database. While we aim to capture all relevant research articles published during the month, limitations in database indexing and search parameters may occasionally cause articles to be missed. If you are the author of an article that you believe has been missed from this monthly list, we encourage you to contact us at centreforinnovation@blood.ca to inquire.   

We are proud of the remarkable work being done across Canadian Blood Services’ network. Stay tuned for more blog posts as we continue to advance scientific discovery and innovation for the Canadian blood system. 

Canadian Blood Services – Driving world-class innovation 

Through discovery, development and applied research, Canadian Blood Services drives world-class innovation in blood transfusion, cellular therapy and transplantation—bringing clarity and insight to an increasingly complex healthcare future. Our dedicated research team and extended network of partners engage in exploratory and applied research to create new knowledge, inform and enhance best practices, contribute to the development of new services and technologies, and build capacity through training and collaboration. Find out more about our research impact.  

The opinions reflected in this post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Canadian Blood Services nor do they reflect the views of Health Canada or any other funding agency.