According to a new study published in the journal Plant and Cell Physiology, hemoglobin found in a variety of beetroot called the sugar beet (Beta vulgaris ssp. vulgaris) could be used as a blood substitute.

“Hemoglobin found in the sugar beet is almost identical to human hemoglobin, especially the form that is found in the brain,” said study lead author Nélida Leiva-Eriksson, a Ph.D. student at Lund University in Sweden.

Leiva-Eriksson and her colleagues have discovered hemoglobin in the roots, leaves and flowers of the plant.

“Previously, it has been presumed that certain plants produce a protein-based substance known as hemoglobin only when stressed, such as in drought or frost. However, we have shown that hemoglobin is produced even in a normal state,” she said.

“But why is there hemoglobin in plants at all? They surely don’t need to transport oxygen.”

The plant hemoglobin has a completely different function, despite its similarity to human hemoglobin.

“We have found that the hemoglobin in the plant binds nitric oxide. It is probably needed to keep certain processes in check, for example so that the nitric oxide doesn’t become toxic, and to ward off bacteria,” Leiva-Eriksson said.

“The process of extracting hemoglobin from the sugar beet is not much more complicated than extracting sugar.”

The challenge lies in obtaining sufficient volumes. However, the team believes there is good reason to think that sugar beets and other crops could become a realistic alternative.

“From one hectare, we could produce 1–2 tons of hemoglobin, which could save thousands of lives,” added study senior author Prof Leif Bülow of Lund University.

The scientists plan to start testing the sugar beet hemoglobin in animals soon.

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Nélida Leiva-Eriksson et al. 2014. Differential Expression Patterns of Non-Symbiotic Hemoglobins in Sugar Beet (Beta vulgaris ssp. vulgaris). Plant Cell Physiol 55 (4): 834-844; doi: 10.1093/pcp/pcu027