Patent attributes
A method of treating blood or plasma of a subject to remove metabolic contaminants by electrophoresis. Blood or plasma from the subject is placed in a first solvent stream, the first solvent stream being separated form a second solvent stream by an electrophoretic membrane. Applying an electric potential between the two solvent streams causes movement of metabolic contaminants from the blood or plasma through the membrane into the second solvent stream while cellular and biomolecular components of the blood or plasma are substantially retained in the first sample stream, or if entering the membrane, being substantially prevented from entering the second solvent stream. Optionally, periodically stopping and reversing the electric potential causes movement of any cellular and biomolecular components of the blood or plasma having entered the membrane to move back into the first solvent stream, wherein substantially not causing any metabolic contaminants that have entered the second solvent stream to re-enter first solvent stream. The potential is maintained until the desired amount of removal of the metabolic contaminants from the blood or plasma in the first solvent stream is achieved. The treated blood or plasma in the first solvent stream is returned to the subject.
