Blood components and function Flashcards
How much iron is in the body at any one time?
3-5g
How is iron stored
Oxygen carrying globin - 70% haemoglobin, 5% myoglobin
Bound to other proteins e.g. cytochromes and transferrin
Sotrage as mostly ferritin 25%
What is ferritin? Where is it mostly found? How does it function?
‣ Many cells can produced apoferritin which binds iron and the complex with iron is known as ferritin
‣ Apoferritin is a huge protein with 24 polypeptide subunits and forms a miscelleof ferrid hydroxyphosphate containing as many as 4000 iron molecules and 50% of the ferritin weight can be iron. Under typical conditions 23% ferritin weight is iron
‣ When iron levels increase it binds to mRNA of apoferritin increasing translation of the protein –> occurs in mucosal cells to rapidly adapt to increased dietary iron to prevent over absorption or mucosal damage
Where is iron absorbed?
Enterocytes of duodenum and upper Jejenum
As Haem or as dietary irons alts
How is Haem absorbed
Direct specialised transport proteins
Haem is soluble pH >6
Absorbed by metallo porphyrin by mucosal cells and broken down in enterocytes
How is iron absorbed
Fe2+ is soluble and absorbed by facilitated diffusion - soluble up to pH 7.5, and the less acid the stomach prooudces the less it is absorbed.
Absorption by divalent metal transport (DMT) on apical membrane 0 under regulation
Fe 3+ precipitates in ph>3 envrionments, so cannot be absorbed. Acidity and ascorbic acid reduced Fe3+ to Fe2+ increasing its absorption. Ferric iron can be conerted by ferrireductase into ferrous form on apical mmebrane but need to be in a free unbound form
Which of Fe2+ and Fe3+ is more absorbed
Fe2+ is soluble and absorbed by facilitated diffusion - soluble up to pH 7.5, and the less acid the stomach prooudces the less it is absorbed.
Absorption by divalent metal transport (DMT) on apical membrane 0 under regulation
Fe 3+ precipitates in ph>3 envrionments, so cannot be absorbed. Acidity and ascorbic acid reduced Fe3+ to Fe2+ increasing its absorption. Ferric iron can be conerted by ferrireductase into ferrous form on apical mmebrane but need to be in a free unbound form
Once absorbed across apical membrane what happens to iron?
Stored and bound to ferritic in FERIC form
Ferrous iron transported via ferroportin out of he enterocyte. Converted to ferric iron at basolateral membrane, (by ferroxidase) thenn binds to transferrin as ferric iron (baseline 33% saturation)
What is the dialy requirement for iron
- Absorption total 0.6 - 1mg/day in adult male, 2.1mg/day in adult female (5-10% of dietary iron intake)
◦ Iron requirements in pregnancy increase by 1g leading to 6-7mg per day absorption from 20 weeks on as by 3rd trimester the foetus takes 4g/day itself
Regulation of iron is by
Basolateral membrane absorption block - reduced ferritin, reduced transferrin
Hepcidin inhibits ferroportin
What form is iron in when bound to ferritin?
Fe3+ ferric
What form is iron in when being transported around the body?
Fe3+ ferric
What is haemosiderin
◦ However if iron stores are high cells accumulate haemosiderin an insoluble cellular iron composed of partially degraded ferritin
What structurally is transferrin?
◦ Transferrin is a beta 1 globulin produced in the liver
What is a platelet
Cellualr component of the haemostatic response
What is the process of platelet formation? From what do they originally form?
Cellular component of the haemostatic response
Progressed from common myeloid prognitor stem cell
How is thrombopoiesis stimulated?
- Megakaryocytes are proudced from differentiation of this stem cell in response to thrombopoeitin
◦ Thrombopoeitn accelarates all stages of the pathway to plt development, is produced 90% in the liver, 10% in kidney, in response to stress and low platelets, and inhibited by mature platelets.
How do megakaryocytes turn inot platelets?
- Megakaryocytes undergo a process called endomitosis –> DNA replication without nuclear or cellular division causing massive polypoid proliferation
- Terminally mature megakaryocytes extend protoplasmic extensions filled with usual platelet components (mitochondria, ribosomes, endoplasmic reticulum, secretory granules, tubular stuctural systems) into sinusoidal vessels where cytoplasm separates into beads and they are pinched off forming platelets
- Megakaryocytes apoptose when cytoplasm exhausted
How long does it take to make a platelet
8-10 days
How many platelets are made per day?
15-40 x 10^9 produced per day
How long does a platelet survive
7-10 days
How are old platelets removed
reticuloendothelial system
What are usual platelet components
‣ Mitochondria
‣ Ribosomes
‣ Short lengths of rough endoplasmic reticulum
‣ Secretery granules
‣ Surface connected canalicular system
‣ Dense tubular systems
How big is platelet
.5 - 3 micrometres