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Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and... Sep 2021Thrombosis is a major complication of cardiovascular disease, leading to myocardial infarction, acute ischemic stroke, or venous thromboembolism. Thrombosis occurs when... (Review)
Review
Thrombosis is a major complication of cardiovascular disease, leading to myocardial infarction, acute ischemic stroke, or venous thromboembolism. Thrombosis occurs when a thrombus forms inside blood vessels disrupting blood flow. Developments in thrombectomy to remove thrombi from vessels have provided new opportunities to study thrombus composition which may help to understand mechanisms of disease and underpin improvements in treatments. We aimed to review thrombus compositions, roles of components in thrombus formation and stability, and methods to investigate thrombi. Also, we summarize studies on thrombus structure obtained from cardiovascular patients and animal models. Thrombi are composed of fibrin, red blood cells, platelets, leukocytes, and neutrophil extracellular traps. These components have been analyzed by several techniques, including scanning electron microscopy, laser scanning confocal microscopy, histochemistry, and immunohistochemistry; however, each technique has advantages and limitations. Thrombi are heterogenous in composition, but overall, thrombi obtained from myocardial infarction are composed of mainly fibrin and other components, including platelets, red blood cells, leukocytes, and cholesterol crystals. Thrombi from patients with acute ischemic stroke are characterized by red blood cell- and platelet-rich regions. Thrombi from patients with venous thromboembolism contain mainly red blood cells and fibrin with some platelets and leukocytes. Thrombus composition from patients with myocardial infarction is influenced by ischemic time. Animal thrombosis models are crucial to gain further mechanistic information about thrombosis and thrombus structure, with thrombi being similar in composition compared with those from patients. Further studies on thrombus composition and function are key to improve treatment and clinical outcome of thrombosis.
Topics: Animals; Blood Coagulation; Blood Platelets; Cholesterol; Disease Models, Animal; Erythrocytes; Fibrin; Humans; Leukocytes; Thrombectomy; Thrombosis
PubMed: 34261330
DOI: 10.1161/ATVBAHA.120.315754 -
American Family Physician Dec 2015An elevated white blood cell count has many potential etiologies, including malignant and nonmalignant causes. It is important to use age- and pregnancy-specific normal...
An elevated white blood cell count has many potential etiologies, including malignant and nonmalignant causes. It is important to use age- and pregnancy-specific normal ranges for the white blood cell count. A repeat complete blood count with peripheral smear may provide helpful information, such as types and maturity of white blood cells, uniformity of white blood cells, and toxic granulations. The leukocyte differential may show eosinophilia in parasitic or allergic conditions, or it may reveal lymphocytosis in childhood viral illnesses. Leukocytosis is a common sign of infection, particularly bacterial, and should prompt physicians to identify other signs and symptoms of infection. The peripheral white blood cell count can double within hours after certain stimuli because of the large bone marrow storage and intravascularly marginated pools of neutrophils. Stressors capable of causing an acute leukocytosis include surgery, exercise, trauma, and emotional stress. Other nonmalignant etiologies of leukocytosis include certain medications, asplenia, smoking, obesity, and chronic inflammatory conditions. Symptoms suggestive of a hematologic malignancy include fever, weight loss, bruising, or fatigue. If malignancy cannot be excluded or another more likely cause is not suspected, referral to a hematologist/oncologist is indicated.
Topics: Education, Medical, Continuing; Humans; Leukocyte Count; Leukocytes; Leukocytosis; Practice Guidelines as Topic
PubMed: 26760415
DOI: No ID Found -
Current Protocols in Cytometry Jul 2015Human peripheral blood is often studied by flow cytometry in both the research and clinical laboratories. The methods for collection, storage, and preparation of...
Human peripheral blood is often studied by flow cytometry in both the research and clinical laboratories. The methods for collection, storage, and preparation of peripheral blood will vary depending on the cell lineage to be examined as well as the type of assay to be performed. This unit presents protocols for collection of blood, separation of leukocytes from whole blood by lysis of erythrocytes, isolating mononuclear cells by density gradient separation, and assorted non-flow sorting methods, such as magnetic bead separations, for enriching specific cell populations, including monocytes, T lymphocytes, B lymphocytes, neutrophils, and platelets, prior to flow cytometric analysis. A protocol is also offered for cryopreservation of cells, since clinical research often involves retrospective flow cytometric analysis of samples stored over a period of months or years.
Topics: Ammonium Chloride; Antibodies; Anticoagulants; Blood Cells; Blood Platelets; Blood Specimen Collection; Cell Adhesion; Cell Fractionation; Cell Separation; Centrifugation, Density Gradient; Complement System Proteins; Cryopreservation; Erythrocytes; Humans; Indicators and Reagents; Leukocytes; Lymphocytes; Magnetic Phenomena; Microspheres; Monocytes; Plastics; Preservation, Biological; Staining and Labeling
PubMed: 26132177
DOI: 10.1002/0471142956.cy0501s73 -
Biosensors Dec 2022A laboratory blood test is vital for assessing a patient's health and disease status. Advances in microfluidic technology have opened the door for on-chip blood... (Review)
Review
A laboratory blood test is vital for assessing a patient's health and disease status. Advances in microfluidic technology have opened the door for on-chip blood analysis. Currently, microfluidic devices can reproduce myriad routine laboratory blood tests. Considerable progress has been made in microfluidic cytometry, blood cell separation, and characterization. Along with the usual clinical parameters, microfluidics makes it possible to determine the physical properties of blood and blood cells. We review recent advances in microfluidic systems for measuring the physical properties and biophysical characteristics of blood and blood cells. Added emphasis is placed on multifunctional platforms that combine several microfluidic technologies for effective cell characterization. The combination of hydrodynamic, optical, electromagnetic, and/or acoustic methods in a microfluidic device facilitates the precise determination of various physical properties of blood and blood cells. We analyzed the physical quantities that are measured by microfluidic devices and the parameters that are determined through these measurements. We discuss unexplored problems and present our perspectives on the long-term challenges and trends associated with the application of microfluidics in clinical laboratories. We expect the characterization of the physical properties of blood and blood cells in a microfluidic environment to be considered a standard blood test in the future.
Topics: Humans; Microfluidics; Cell Separation; Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; Blood Cells; Microfluidic Analytical Techniques
PubMed: 36671848
DOI: 10.3390/bios13010013 -
Cells Feb 2024This Editorial 'Advances in Red Blood Cell Research' is the preface for the special issue with the same title which files 14 contributions listed in Table 1 [...].
This Editorial 'Advances in Red Blood Cell Research' is the preface for the special issue with the same title which files 14 contributions listed in Table 1 [...].
Topics: Erythrocytes
PubMed: 38391972
DOI: 10.3390/cells13040359 -
Aging Cell Dec 2023Approximately 25 trillion erythrocytes (red blood cells) circulate in the bloodstream of an adult human, surpassing the number of circulating leukocytes (white blood...
Approximately 25 trillion erythrocytes (red blood cells) circulate in the bloodstream of an adult human, surpassing the number of circulating leukocytes (white blood cells) by a factor of about 1000. Moreover, the erythrocyte turnover rate accounts for approximately 76% of the turnover rate of all circulating blood cells. This simple math shows that the hematopoietic system principally spends its telomere length-dependent replicative capacity on building and maintaining the erythrocyte blood pool. Erythropoiesis (red blood cell production) is thus the principal cause of telomere shortening with age in hematopoietic cells (HCs), a conclusion that holds significant implications for linking telomere length dynamics in HCs to health and lifespan of modern humans.
Topics: Adult; Humans; Erythropoiesis; Erythrocytes; Leukocytes; Longevity; Telomere
PubMed: 37824094
DOI: 10.1111/acel.13997 -
International Journal of Molecular... May 2022Red blood cell-derived extracellular vesicles (RBCEVs) are vesicles naturally produced by red blood cells and play multiple roles such as acting as cell-to-cell... (Review)
Review
Red blood cell-derived extracellular vesicles (RBCEVs) are vesicles naturally produced by red blood cells and play multiple roles such as acting as cell-to-cell communication messengers in both normal physiological and diseased states. RBCEVs are highly promising delivery vehicles for therapeutic agents such as biomolecules and nucleic acids as they are easy to source, safe, and versatile. RBCEVs autonomously target the liver and pass the blood-brain barrier into the brain, which is highly valuable for the treatment of liver and brain diseases. RBCEVs can be modified by various functional units, including various functional molecules and nanoparticles, to improve their active targeting capabilities for tumors or other sites. Moreover, the RBCEV level is significantly shifted in many diseased states; hence, they can also serve as important biomarkers for disease diagnoses. It is clear that RBCEVs have considerable potential in multiple medical applications. In this review, we briefly introduce the biological roles of RBCEVs, presented interesting advances in RBCEV applications, and discuss several challenges that need to be addressed for their clinical translation.
Topics: Drug Delivery Systems; Erythrocytes; Extracellular Vesicles; Humans; Nanoparticles; Neoplasms
PubMed: 35682606
DOI: 10.3390/ijms23115927 -
IUBMB Life Sep 2019Cell-surface-bound extracellular DNA (csbDNA) is present on the outer membrane of blood cells, including both red blood cells and leukocytes. Although less well... (Review)
Review
Cell-surface-bound extracellular DNA (csbDNA) is present on the outer membrane of blood cells, including both red blood cells and leukocytes. Although less well characterized than cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in plasma and serum, leukocyte and red blood cell csbDNA form a considerable fraction of the blood extracellular nucleic acids pool, with typically at least comparable amount of DNA occurring bound to the outer surface of cells as compared with circulating free DNA in plasma. The cellular origin of csbDNA is not clear; however, as with cfDNA, in patients with cancer a proportion is derived from the tumor, thus making it potentially a useful source of DNA for cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and monitoring. © 2019 IUBMB Life, 71(9):1201-1210, 2019.
Topics: Biomarkers, Tumor; Cell-Free Nucleic Acids; Erythrocytes; Humans; Leukocytes; Neoplasms
PubMed: 31091350
DOI: 10.1002/iub.2070 -
FEBS Letters Dec 2019The haematopoietic system is established during embryonic life through a series of developmental steps that culminates with the generation of haematopoietic stem cells.... (Review)
Review
The haematopoietic system is established during embryonic life through a series of developmental steps that culminates with the generation of haematopoietic stem cells. Characterisation of the transcriptional network that regulates blood cell emergence has led to the identification of transcription factors essential for this process. Among the many factors wired within this complex regulatory network, ETV2, SCL and RUNX1 are the central components. All three factors are absolutely required for blood cell generation, each one controlling a precise step of specification from the mesoderm germ layer to fully functional blood progenitors. Insight into the transcriptional control of blood cell emergence has been used for devising protocols to generate blood cells de novo, either through reprogramming of somatic cells or through forward programming of pluripotent stem cells. Interestingly, the physiological process of blood cell generation and its laboratory-engineered counterpart have very little in common.
Topics: Blood Cells; Cell Differentiation; Cellular Reprogramming; Core Binding Factor Alpha 2 Subunit; Hematopoietic Stem Cells; Humans; Mesoderm; Pluripotent Stem Cells; T-Cell Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia Protein 1; Transcription Factors; Transcriptional Activation
PubMed: 31432499
DOI: 10.1002/1873-3468.13585 -
Journal of Tissue Engineering and... 2023Myocardial infarction, stroke, and pulmonary embolism are all deadly conditions associated with excessive thrombus formation. Standard treatment for these conditions... (Review)
Review
Myocardial infarction, stroke, and pulmonary embolism are all deadly conditions associated with excessive thrombus formation. Standard treatment for these conditions involves systemic delivery of thrombolytic agents to break up clots and restore blood flow; however, this treatment can impact the hemostatic balance in other parts of the vasculature, which can lead to excessive bleeding. To avoid this potential danger, targeted thrombolytic treatments that can successfully target thrombi and release an effective therapeutic load are necessary. Because activated platelets and fibrin make up a large proportion of clots, these two components provide ample opportunities for targeting. This review will highlight potential thrombus targeting mechanisms as well as recent advances in thrombolytic therapies which utilize blood-cells and clotting proteins to effectively target and lyse clots.
Topics: Humans; Thrombolytic Therapy; Blood Cells; Thrombosis; Blood Platelets; Fibrin
PubMed: 37731481
DOI: 10.1155/2023/6117810