Why can't we use animal blood for human blood transfusions?

Just as humans have different blood groups, so do animals. And just as transfusion between incompatible human blood groups leads to severe reactions and death, so too will the transfusion between incompatible animal and human blood groups. read more

And just as transfusion between incompatible human blood groups leads to severe reactions and death, so too will the transfusion between incompatible animal and human blood groups. Animal-to-human transfusion isn't impossible, it just needs to be done carefully and the right donor animal selected (or engineered). read more

The ability to transfuse blood has proved to be a valuable medical procedure for saving lives, both human and animal. Blood transfusions, however, require stringent matching to avoid life-threatening reactions in blood recipients. read more

The blood group commonality between humans and other animals thus is not a new revelation, but this raises question of why xenotransfusion was not seriously decades ago. One reason is because, despite ABO and Rh commonality, there are minor differences between the blood of humans, apes, and other animals whose effects on transfusion would have to be understood completely. read more