Orono scientists research lobster blood’s future role in medicine

Maine lobsters have long delighted tourists as the state’s most beloved seafood. But one company thinks the crustaceans can save human lives by providing their blood for use in new drugs.

The effort, involving a longtime lobster scientist, wouldn’t be the first example of coastal invertebrates being used to aid human health. Horseshoe crabs are harvested because their blood contains a protein used to detect contamination in medical products. A different startup company in Maine announced in 2016 that it would develop a bandage coated with a substance extracted from crushed lobster shells. And the U.S. Army has made use of field bandages treated with a blood clotting compound processed from shrimp shells. Read more

Related Posts

UMaine professor McGill receives top German research award

ORONO — University of Maine ecology professor Brian McGill was awarded the Humboldt Research Award, one of the most prestigious scientific...

20 July 2023

Four Maine workforce programs could get $6.5M in fed funding

Four workforce training programs in Maine could receive nearly $6.5 million in federal funding through the markup of the fiscal year 2024 financial...

18 July 2023

Music as medicine: FDA approves stroke damage therapy from Portland startup

Doctors may soon start writing an unconventional prescription to help stroke survivors regain their ability to walk: music. MedRhythms, a Portland...

14 July 2023