The Role Of The Red Blood Cell Flashcards
What is the main purpose of the red blood cells?
Transport of oxygen to tissues and carbon dioxide away from tissues
What are the man in structural properties of the red blood cell?
. Flexible, bi-concave disk
Allows for passage through small capillary blood vessels
• Haemoglobin within red cells
Increase the oxygen carrying capacity of blood
• Cell surface proteins
Clinically significant proteins include those that define blood group
• No nucleus and no mitochondria Increases flexibility of cell
Rely on glycolysis for energy
What are the two factors of haemoglobin?
Haemoglobin = haem + globin
- Haem = iron bound to porphyrin ring
- Globin = protein chains that bind haem
What is hemoglobin A (HbA) made up of
- 2 alpha globin chains
- 2 beta globin chains
What direction does a higher temperature shift the Bohr shift curve?
Right
Where is the blood made in adult life
Bone marrow
What are the four ways red cell production can go wrong?
Bone marrow failure
Problems with globin production
Lack of components required red cells and haem production
Lack of stimulus
What can go wrong in red cell function (intrinsic)?
Red cell membrane defects
Red cell enzyme production problems
Sickle cell
What can go wrong in red cell function? Cell extrinsic
Haemolysis -immune mediated haemolysis
Clinical consequences of anaemia
↓ RBC production / ↑ RBC loss ↓ Reduced Hb carriage
↓ O2 transport
Which lead to
Breathlessness response to anaemia
Breathlessness response to anaemia
Complex mechanism involving:
• Increased cardiac output; to increase blood circulation and oxygen delivery
• Detection of hypoxia by specialised receptors in tissue, acts centrally
All as part of wider effort to increase gas exchange and oxygen carriage to tissues
Treatments for anemia?
Replacement (B12, folate, Iron)
. Erythropoietin
• Transfusion
• Transplant
Targetting specific diseases
. Bone marrow replacement
. immune modulation
Evolving therapies
• Gene therapy
