Leukocytes

Question 1

What is the difference between leukocytosis and leukopenia?

Answer 1

Leukocytosis is an increase in white blood cells, and leukopenia is a decrease in white blood cells

Question 2

Approximately what is the diameter of a neutrophil?

Answer 2

12-15 micrometers

Question 3

What shape is a neutrophil’s nucleus?

Answer 3

Lobulated or partially segmented

Question 4

What color is a neutrophil’s cytoplasm?

Answer 4

Pale pink or light blue

Question 5

Rabbits, guinea pigs, birds, and reptiles have neutrophils, as well as another kind of neutrophil. What is it called? What makes it different from a regular neutrophil?

Answer 5

Heterophil; the granules are more prominent

Question 6

What are toxic neutrophils?

Answer 6

Neutrophils that have been activated during times of inflammatory disease or toxemia

Question 7

What are some morphological changes seen in a toxic neutrophil?

Answer 7

It has blue cytoplasm that shows foamy vacuolation, the nucleus is abnormally shaped, and there are Dohle bodies present in the cytoplasm

Question 8

Where are neutrophils produced?

Answer 8

It is a myloid cell made in the bone marrow

Question 9

Neutrophil, eosinophil, and basophil migration into tissues is unidirectional, what does this mean?

Answer 9

Once they’ve reached the tissue, they stay there, and they do not return into circulation

Question 10

What is the average lifespan of a neutrophil?

Answer 10

About 1-4 days

Question 11

What is the most frequent case of leukocytosis?

Answer 11

Neutrophilia, which is a high number of neutrophil granulocytes in the blood

Question 12

What is the main function of neutrophils?

Answer 12

Defense

Question 13

What are some causes of neutrophilia?

Answer 13

Epinephrine release, corticosteriods or stress, and acute or chronic inflammation

Question 14

In dogs and cats, there are in general more _______ than any other type of WBC, in a ratio of about 3.5:1

Answer 14

Neutrophils

Question 15

What is the most frequent cause of leukopenia?

Answer 15

Neutropenia, which is a decreased number of neutrophils

Question 16

What are some causes of neutropenia?

Answer 16

acute demand or consumption in tissues, decreased production in bone marrow, ineffective granulopoiesis, or increased margination (neutrophils that do not circulate)

Question 17

What are band cells?

Answer 17

Immature neutrophils

Question 18

A left shift is an increased number of band cells. What is a degenerative left shift?

Answer 18

When the number of band cells exceeds the number of mature neutrophils in circulation

Question 19

Approximately what is the size of a lymphocyte?

Answer 19

About 9-12 micrometers

Question 20

What are the 3 main types of lymphocytes?

Answer 20

B cells, T cells and memory cells

Question 21

B cells and T cells both originate in the bone marrow, but mature in different locations, where do they mature?

Answer 21

B cells mature in the bursa, and T cells mature in the thymus

Question 22

What is the pathway of circulation for a lymphocyte?

Answer 22

Blood -> Lymph nodes -> Lymph -> Blood

Question 23

What is the lifespan of a B cell?

Answer 23

Months to years, depending on what it’s used for

Question 24

What is lymphocytosis?

Answer 24

Increased number of lymphocytes

Question 25

What are some causes of lymphocytosis?

Answer 25

Excitement (typically in cats and young horses), antigentic stimulation, and lymphosarcoma/lymphoma or lymphocytic leukemia

Question 26

What is lymphopenia?

Answer 26

Decreased number of lymphocytes

Question 27

What are some causes of lymphopenia?

Answer 27

Glucocorticoids, disruption of lymphatic circulation, and lymphosarcoma/lymphoma

Question 28

What is the biggest type of white blood cell?

Answer 28

Monocyte

Question 29

What changes occur in a monocyte when it is exposed to EDTA?

Answer 29

Vacuolization of the cytoplasm, and the cytoplasm forms pseudopods around the RBCs in close proximity

Question 30

Kupffer cells and glial cells are both types of what white blood cell?

Answer 30

Monocytes

Question 31

Why aren’t basopenia or monocytopenia a clinically recognized condition?

Answer 31

Having zero monocytes or basophils is considered to be normal

Question 32

What is the main function of monocytes?

Answer 32

Phagocytosis, regulation of the inflammatory response and antigen processing

Question 33

Dogs, cats, and horses all have eosinophils with differently shaped granules, what shaped granules does each of them have?

Answer 33

Dogs - Round
Cats - Rod-shaped
Horse - Large and round

Question 34

Eosinophils play a major role in the destruction of _________

Answer 34

Parasites

Question 35

What is the lifespan of an eosinophil?

Answer 35

Several days to several weeks

Question 36

When might we see an animal present with eosinophilia?

Answer 36

Worms, wheezes, and weird diseases

Question 37

Most species’ basophils have dark purple granules, what species has lavender?

Answer 37

Cats

Question 38

Mast cells are similar to what type of white blood cell?

Answer 38

Basophils

Question 39

Why does caution have to be taken when excising a mast cell tumor?

Answer 39

The granules in mast cells contain histamine, and if the tumor ruptures, the histamine released to the patient under anesthesia can cause them to crash

Question 40

Why will mast cells tumors get bigger if they’re messed around with too much?

Answer 40

The granules in mast cells contain histamine, which is a vasodilator; touching it can cause histamine to be released

Question 41

What is the main function of a basophil?

Answer 41

hypersensitivity reactions (allergies) and inflammation

Question 42

Where are mast cells typically found?

Answer 42

On the skin