Crab Blood is Gold (Or why a living fossil may save your life)

July 18, 2006

According to the Ecological Research & Development Group (ERDG) of Delaware, whose primary focus is the conservation of the world’s four remaining horseshoe crab species,  “an extract of the horseshoe crab’s blood is used by the pharmaceutical and medical device industries to ensure that their products (e.g., intravenous drugs, vaccines, and medical devices) are free of bacterial contamination. No other test works as easily or reliably for this purpose.” Read more.