GoKawiilDARPA funds $73 million push for synthetic blood substitute
DARPA, the Pentagon's research arm, has launched a $73 million program led by Navy Lt. Cmdr. Robert Murray to develop a synthetic blood alternative for battlefield use. The effort responds to chronic blood shortages that researchers say cause roughly 10,000 preventable deaths annually in the US and far more worldwide, largely due to blood's short shelf life once thawed or stored.