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For the oxygen supply there's a techology, already widely used, that runs 24/7 with no marginal maintenance cost. It takes O2 from the environment and outputs waste as a gas back into the environment, has a distribution system that can reach the entire body, and even its own pump that is self-repairing and typically lasts 70-100 years.

Seriously, why not extract O2 from the bloodstream? Is it that difficult? I don't doubt they considered this option; I just wonder what the issues are.



Speaking as a layman here.

I do know which one is safer, as to gain access to blood you have to gain access to a vein, likely by inserting a small tube made of [something] inside the vein, expect it to never break down and enter the bloodstream, become compromised, or be hit with an impact and tear the vein open to create internal bleeding. Then you also have to have a system to get rid of the waste blood (everything but the small amount of oxygen you want) all entirely within a closed system implanted into the arm, thigh, etc.


> vein

Artery - not a lot of O2 in veins.

But other than nitpicking defensively, I agree those good points. I'd still like to see what any actual bio-whatever engineers have to say.


Well, if you're going to be really nitpicky, pulmonary veins also carry oxygenated blood ;)


Fair enough. Probably we don't want to tap into those!


Also a layman (but t1d), I believe what you are saying is correct/Insulin is injected into fatty tissue, and I presume this implant would go in fatty tissue. Getting to a vein sounds like a much higher risk.


My guess would be this:

> Another possibility, which could prevent the need for immunosuppressive drugs, is to encapsulate the transplanted cells within a flexible device that protects the cells from the immune system. However, finding a reliable oxygen supply for these encapsulated cells has proven challenging.

Hemoglobin is a large molecule. It is difficult to create a barrier that allows it to pass without also allowing in anti-bodies. Trying to extract the oxygen outside of the barrier and that pass just the oxygen through is theoretically another approach. But at that point, doing the same thing with water instead of hemoglobin is just easier.


Oxygen is obtained from hemoglobin all the time (obviously). Is it that hard to recreate what the body does?




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