Today, scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill announced that they have discovered how to customize a key human enzyme responsible for producing heparin. (See NewsWise, “Scientists Teach Enzyme to Make Synthetic Heparin in More Varieties.") This important announcement brings researchers closer to developing a more effective synthetic anticoagulant, rather than using raw natural heparin from pigs. As a result, it would shorten the drug chain and make it less susceptible to contamination. This is important because as learned from the heparin debacle, companies such as Baxter and Scientific Protein Laboratories, who are more interested in saving a buck by purchasing product from China rather than protecting the American public, cannot be trusted to ensure the safety of their drug. As stated by Jian Liu, Ph.D., associate professor in the school’s medicinal chemistry and natural products division, “The pig stuff has served us well for 50 years and is very inexpensive, but if we cannot control the supply chain, we cannot ensure the safety of the drug.”

Labels: Baxter, Baxter Heparin, China, contamination, Heparin, heparin attorney, Heparin Class Action, heparin lawsuit, heparin lawyer, Liu, OSCS, Scientific Protein, synthetic heparin