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Nature Biotechnology 26, 721–723 (1 July 2008) | doi:10.1038/nbt0708-721a

Meta-analysis torpedoes blood substitutes

Charlie Schmidt

Trials of hemoglobin-based blood substitutes have been dogged by clinical and regulatory setbacks and even attracted ethical spats over patient consent. But now a controversial meta-analysis published in the May 21 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA 299, 2304–2312, 2008) threatens to cast a cloud over the entire field.