Book excerpt: While a reliable supply of donated blood is vital in modern medicine, it remains the case that blood transfusion comes with its own problems, such as infectious diseases, immunological adverse reactions, and difficulties with long-term storage and transportation of blood components. With a view to solving these problems, developing a suitable blood substitute has been a major goal for decades. Artificial Oxygen Carrier: Its Front Line is a compilation of reports on the concepts behind artificial oxygen carriers, as well as the new discoveries in the field that were presented during the 13th Keio International Symposium for Life Science and Medicine. This volume describes valuable topics, including artificial red blood cells, modified haemoglobin, perfluorocarbons, and haemoglobin vesicles. It explains cutting-edge developments in artificial oxygen carrier research and will be a valuable resource to all concerned with the field.