First- and second-generation perfluorocarbon emulsions

This review addresses first- and second-generation perfluorocarbon emulsions, which are used as blood substitutes when the use of donor blood is problematic. The first perfluorocarbon preparations created as synthetic blood substitutes started to be used in Japan (Green Cross Corporation). These were the first-generation preparations Fluosol-DA 20%, Fluosol-DA 35%, and the Russian formulation Perftoran. The disadvantages of first-generation perfluorocarbon preparations were that they could not be sterilized, were unstable, and produced significant numbers of side effects. Second-generation emulsions include the American formulation Oxygent and the Russian formulations of the Ftoran series, which produce fewer side effects and can be rigorously sterilized and thawed quickly without alteration to their physicochemical or medical-biological properties. Further progress in creating artificial gas transporters and energy carriers based on fluoroorganic and organic compounds will lead to the wider use of emulsion nanosystems in many areas of medicine and biology.