Sanquin (Research at CLB), Amsterdam

In the Netherlands, the BloodGen project is performed at Sanquin Research at CLB, location Amsterdam and at Sanquin Blood Bank South West Region, location Rotterdam. Sanquin was founded in 1998, after a fusion of all Dutch Blood Banks and the Central Laboratory of Blood Transfusion Service of the Dutch Red Cross. Sanquin organises the national blood supply (on a non-profit basis). Furthermore, research related to immunohematology, blood cells and blood transfusion is carried out.

The Dutch team:

Ellen van der Schoot is head of the Dept of Experimental Immunohematology and responsible for the laboratory of Immunocytology (diagnostic service to evaluate blood cell proliferative disease). She is project leader of several research projects related to immune-mediated blood cell destruction and to hematopoietic stem cells. One of these is the evaluation of the fetal RHD genotyping with maternal blood as a routine screening to restrict anti-D prophylaxis to those women pregnant with an RhD positive child.

Masja de Haas is one of the four supervisors of the red cell and platelet serology performed at the National Reference laboratory for Immunohematology (Head - Marijke Overbeeke). She is responsible for the implementation of genotyping assays for red cell and platelet antigen typing of donors or patients (transfusion problems or prenatal screenings). She is project leader of research projects related to immune-mediated blood cell destruction. One of these is a cooperative project with the Dept of Public Health of the Academic Medical Centre (Prof Dr Gouke Bonsel), which is a nationwide evaluation of the irregular red cell antibody screening and the antenatal anti-D prophylaxis in pregnancy.

Petra Maaskant-van Wijk is senior investigator and responsible for the development and implementation of blood cell genotyping assays on a one patient/donor basis as well as in medium throughput systems (Pyrosequencing) in the Blood Bank South West. She is project leader of the project “Validation of blood-group genotyping as part of daily practice in blood transfusion”. Within the scope of this project a cost-effectiveness study will be performed comparing HPA genotyping with Taqmantechnology (developed at Sanquin Research at CLB) and the Pyrosequencing technique (developed at Sanquin Blood Bank South West Region). Furthermore she is involved in research concerning ethnic variability among blood groups.