Viral inactivation treatment of red blood cells using phthalocyanines and red light

摘要

Disclosed are two processes. The first process involves treating a red blood cell-containing composition to inactivate an extracellular or intracellular virus which may be present in said red blood cell- containing composition by subjecting said red blood cell- containing composition to a virucidally effective amount of a phthalocyanine and red light, wherein the improvement involves (i) determining the action spectrum of said phthalocyanine for causing inactivation of said virus; (ii) determining the action spectrum of said phthalocyanine for causing red blood cell damage; (iii) comparing (i) and (ii), and, if (i) and (ii) are not identical then determining the wavelength at which the largest favorable difference exists between (i) and (ii); (iv) providing a red light source emitting red light only in 10 nm in either direction of the wavelength determined in (iii); and then (v) subjecting said red blood cell-containing composition to said virucidally effective amount of said phthalocyanine and said provided red light source. In a preferred embodiment, the phthalocyanine is Pc 4, which has the formula: HOSiPcOSi(CH.sub.3).sub.2 (CH.sub.2).sub.3 N(CH. sub.3).sub.2. The second process involves transfusing red blood cells to a patient in need thereof by withdrawing red blood cells from a donor, subjecting the red blood cells to the first process and transfusing the red blood cells to said patient.