Trial Court Judge Issues Injuction Barring Newspaper From Printing Info About Blood Substitute

A California Superior Court Judge has granted a TRO preventing a San Diego newspaper from printing information it obtained under the California Public Records Act about the experimental drug Polyheme. In an ex parte hearing, the company testing the drug, Northfield Labs of Evanston, Illinois, argued successfully that it would stand to lose trade secrets and competitive advantage if the paper published the information. The FDA has not yet approved the drug, which is currently in clinical trials. The TRO remains in effect through January 13. Why the interest in Polyheme? It’s “fake blood” and if it tests successfully, it could save thousands of lives, both at accident sites and in hospitals. Real blood is in short supply, particularly the “universal donor” type. Read more here and here.