Anemias Flashcards
Hb
Men- 14-18 g/dL Women 12-16 g/dL 90-95% of the cytoplasm of RBC
Hct
Men- 42-52% Women- 37-47%
MCV
Mean red blood cell volume/size estimate Hct/Rbc 80-100 fL (10^-15 L) 100 macrocytic 80-100- normocytic
Mean cell Hb concentration
Hb/ Hct Differentiate bt hypo and normo chromatic 32-36 g/dL
RDW
Red cell distribution width Std of MCV Tells how much cells differ in size, low = uniform / minimal anisocytosis 12-13.5 %
WBC
4.5-11*10^9/L
4,500 to 11,000/mm3
PMNs
45-70% 2-8 *10^9
Lymphocytes
25-33%
1-4 *10^9
Monocytes
1-8% 0.1-0.8
Eosinophils
0-6% 0-0.5
Basophils
0-1% 0-0.3
Platelet count
150-450*10^9/L
Mean platelet volume
Depends on count Low count body tries to compensate by making platelets bigger
Common causes of iron deficiency anemia
- Infants/Children: diet, breastfeeding
- Adults: GI bleed, peptic ulcer, menorhhagia, pregnancy, colon polyps, carcinoma
- Tropical: hookworm (nicator and anstilastima)
- Celiac/ Malabsorption
- Gastrectomy ( acidity of stomach maintains iron as fe2+ which binds to heme better so loss of some of stomach means less fe2+)
Megloblastic anemia
Impaired DNA synthesis
B12 or folate deficiency (methotrexate, folate anagonist)
Other rapidly dividing cells effected too - enlarged epithelial cells in gut; macrocytic RBCs and hyper segmented PMNs (greater than 5 lobes) giant red cells and neutrophil precursors (band cells) also seen in bone marrow ; increased lactic acid dehydrogenase (LDH-2); glossitis
Pathophysiology of hereditary spherocytosis
Autosomal Dominant; Extravascular normocytic anemia
RBC cytoskeleton membrane tethering protein defect in spectrin or ankyrin, band 3.1, which causes instability and breakage of RBCs
Change in shape makes cells less able to navigate splenic sinusoids and consumed by macrophages in spleenic sinusoids
G6PD deficiency
X linked recessive disorder that reduces half life of RBC that renders cell vulnerable to O2 stress; common in black males
RBCs use glutathione to protect against oxidative stress (H2O2 +GSH (reduced glutathione)–> GS-SG; needs to be reduced back to GSH via NADPH which is produced by G6PD)
In red cells African variant: mildly reduced half life G6PD; older cells destroyed
Mediterranean variant: marked reduced G6PD half life; when ox stress more cells die
Protective against falciparum malaria
Infections, drugs (antimalarials, sulfadrugs, aspirin, vit K), fava beans
The increased free radicals denature the bonds between heme and glob in making globin form a glob –> Heinz bodies–> bite cells by spleen –> intravascular hemolysis, Hemoglobinuria, and back pain (nephrotoxic)
Enzymatic studies after disease has resolved (during crisis all the cells without the enzyme are dead)
Sickle cell anemia mutation
Autosomal recessive point mutation at residue 6 in beta globin gene where glutamic acid gets replaced with valine
Protective against Plasmodium falciparum malaria
Thalassemia
Decreased production of a globin chain, leading to decreased hemoglobin production and also tetramers due to unpaired chains
Common in Mediteranian/Greek, Asian, and African populations
Warm antibody Immunohemolytic Anemia
IgG anti red blood cells antibodies that bind well at 37 Celsius (central body) and are consumed by macrophages in the spleen; slow loss of membrane from cell results in spherocytosis
- Idiopathic
- Secondary immune system disease: SLE, RA, or Drugs (PCN- haptens, methyldopa- production of antibodies and binds existent antigens)
Chronic mild anemia with moderate splenomegaly
Diagnosis: Coomb +
Treat: IVIG (splenic marcophages will eat IVIG instead of red cells); Steroids, removal of drug; splenectomy (removes antibodies and destruction)
Microangiopathic Hemolytic Anemia
Pathology in small blood vessels that results in a hemolytic anemia (some sort of thrombus that blocks the vessel partially)
Tear up blood cells –> Schitocytes ( pointy red cell fragments)
Causes: TTP ; HUS; DIC; Maligant hypertension, SLE, disseminated cancer
Pathophysiology of anemia of chronic disease
Associated with chronic disease or cancer (inflammation, infection, malignancy)
Inflammation (IL6) produce acute phase reactant Hepcidin (made in liver) that sequesters iron by blocking ferroportin and also suppresses EPO; protective mechanism because bacteria need iron to proliferate (body thinks any inflammation is bacterial)
Aplastic anemia
Multipotent myeloid stem cells are supressed resulting in pancytopenia
- Idiopathic
- Myelotoxic agent (choramphenicol, benzene, alkalating agents, antimetabolites, or idiosyncratic hypersentitivity rxn)
- Viral agents (parvovirus b19, EBV, HIV, HCV)
- Congenital: Fanconi anemia
Empty marrow on marrow biopsy (>90% fat)
Cessation of causative drugs, transfusion, marrow stimulating factors (EPO, GM-CSF, G-CSF); immunosuppression (if etiology is autoimmune); bone marrow transplant
Anemia
Decrease in the oxygen -transporting capacity of the blood usually steming from a decrease in the red blood cell mass to subnormal levels
Measure of mass of rbcs Less than 13.5 g/dl males and 12.5 g/dl females
Iron metabolism
In meat( heme derived, better absorb) and veg Absorbed in duodenum by enterocytes, reduce to Fe2+ in lumen, dimethyltransferase brings it into enterocyte and then transported into blood via ferroportin on the basolateral side ; and oxidized to Fe3+ (hephestin) no way for body to get rid of iron so regulates fe through enterocytes Bound to transferrin in blood ( bc can make free radicles via Fenton rxn) and then transported to liver or bone marrow macrophages for storage and stored bound to ferritin
Fe lab measures
For every three transferrin molecules one will carry an iron and then bound to ferritin in macrophage Serum iron- iron in blood Transferrin in blood- tibc. Total iron binding capacity %sat- how much transferrin is bound to fe Serum ferritin- how much iron is present in bone marrow macrophages and liver
Stages of iron deficiency
1.) bone marrow uses up stored fe making new rbcs ( serum ferritin decreases; tibc increases - liver recognizes fe is down and pump out transferrin) 2.) serum iron consumed ( serum iron goes down, percent saturation of iron decreases) 3.) normocytic anemia- bone marrow continues to make rbcs, but has less fe, so make less of them 4.) microcytic, hypochromic anemia- so severe that can’t produce normal rbcs so has to send out cells smaller than normal with less color , expanded central area of pallor
Clinical features of iron deficiency
Anemia
Koilonychia- spoon shaped nails
Pica
Plummer Vincent syndrome
Iron deficiency anemia with esophageal web ( outfold of mucosa obstructs lumen of the esophagus that can cause dysphasia), and atrophic glottis
Presents with anemia, dysphasia, and beefy red tongue
Sideroblastic anemia
Defective protoporphyrin synthesis
Pp synthesized by a series of rxns that occur within cytoplasm and mitochondria in the erythroblasts
Gives you ringed sideroblast cells with ring of blue in a Prussian blue stain representing iron in the mitochondria
Steps in protoporphyrin synthesis
- ) succinyl coa —> aminolevelunic acid catalyst ala synthase ( rate limiting step) and vit b6 is a cofactor
- ) ala –> porphobelinagin catalyst ala dehydrogenase
N) protoporphyrin binds to iron to make heme via ferrokelatase and rxn occurs in mitochondria ( iron from bone marrow macrophages is transferred to erythroblasts and into mitochondria so with low pp iron enters in mitochondria and gets trapped and piles up and creates a ring of iron loaded nucleus around the cell : ring sideroblast)
Where is the iron located in sideroblastic anemia?
In the mitochondria in erythroblasts
Normal types of hemoglobin
Fetal Hb- HbF which is alpha 2 gamma 2
HbA which is alpha2beta2
Hba2 which is alpha2delta2
Folate and b 12 in DNA biochem
Folate enters body as tetrahydrofolate and is methylated; to make DNA precursors needs to loose methyl group which is taken by b12; B12 then wants to get rid of methyl group so gives it to homocysteine Homocysteine takes methyl group and becomes methionine Methionine then acts as a methyl donor in other rxns
B12 is also used to succinyl coA into methylmalonic acid
Other causes of macrocytic anemia non megaloblastic
- Alcoholism
- Liver disease
- Drugs 5-fu
macrocytic rbcs but no hyperseg PMNs or megaloblastic change in other rapidly dividing cells
Folate Digestion
Leafy green vegetables
Absorbed in jejunum ; conjugated to glumatic acid, but can only have one glutamate residue to be absorbed, polygutimated again in cell (cannot diffuse back out)
Used to make pyrines and pyrimadines, converts U–> T
Develop deficiency in months bc body stores are minimal
Vit b12 digestion and absorption
B12 animal derived protein via meat or egg, bound to meat products
Cleaved in stomach by acid and bound to r-binder produced by salivary glands
Cleaved in small bowel by proteases made by pancreas
Vb12 binds intrinsic factor made by parietal cells in body of stomach
Absorbed in ileum via cubilin transporter, dissociates from IF in enterocytes and binds to transcobalimin to be transported in the blood
Takes yrs to develop bc large hepatic stores
Reticulocyte count
Young rbcs released from bone marrow Larger with blueish cytoplasm due to residual RNA in cytoplasm Normal 1-2% Anemia generally increases reticulocytes to greater than 3% Measured as percentage of total rbcs so will be more elevated in anemia than actually increase in production so need to correct for anemia by multiplying by Hct/45 ( normal Hct) Low (less than 3%) corrected reticulocyte count suggests production problem in bone marrow
Shared features of Hemolysis
- decreased lifespan of RBCs
- retention of breakdown products
- increase EPO and reticulocytosis
RBC count
Men: 4.5-6 * 10^12 /L Women: 3.8 - 5.2 10^12 /L
RBC lifespan
120 days
Corrected Reticulocyte count
CRC = Reticulocyte count * (Hct/Normal Hct) Usually normal Hct of 45 is used >3% CRC indicates loss of RBCs with compensatory production of recticulocytes