Blood

Blood Considered to be a “fluid” tissue Comprised of 2 things: Formed elements: think cells Plasma: nonliving fluid

Formed Elements Erythrocytes AKA red blood cells (RBCs) Function to transport oxygen in the blood to all cells in the body Protein called hemoglobin found within the RBC allows for this Where are these formed? Red marrow of bones in the epiphysis

Too Little? Too Much? Anemia Caused by a decrease in oxygen-carrying ability in the blood as a result of: Lower than normal number of RBCs Abnormal hemoglobin content Too Much? Polycythemia Caused by an increase in number of RBCs as a result of Bone marrow cancer Living at high altitudes

Formed Elements Leukocytes AKA white blood cells (WBCs) Body’s defense against infection—the immune system Come in many different types that have specific functions in terms of fighting disease

Too much? Too little? Leukocytosis Indicative of bacterial or viral infection This is a good thing! If leukocytes are prevalent but abnormal, then you have leukemia Too little? Leukopenia Commonly caused by certain drugs or anticancer agents Could also be caused by autoimmune diseases like systemic lupus erythymatosus and Hodgkin’s Lymphoma

Plasma 55% of blood by volume Composed of dissolved nutrients, salts, respiratory gases, hormones, plasma proteins, and cellular waste Also includes antibodies

Plasma Donation You can sell your plasma! CSL Plasma will allow you to donate when you are 18 Your plasma donation will go towards hemophiliacs and people will immune or blood disorders

Hemophilia This is a congenital, genetic condition that causes a person to lack certain clotting factors Makes them prone to bleeding and bruising Treatment=blood transfusion Prior to the 1980s, blood was not screened for diseases like hepatitis and HIV, both of which are blood borne

Bad Blood: A Cautionary Tale

The junction between blood and immunity Blood Types The junction between blood and immunity

RBCs There are different blood types A, B, AB, and O The types get their names from the antigen found on their membranes An antigen is just a protein that the body can recognize as being foreign They can illicit an immune response

Blood transfusion possibilities RBCs Your immune system AUTOMATICALLY creates antibodies to protect itself from foreign things If you are type A blood, you have the type A antigen on the outside of your RBCs and you have anti-B antibodies Let’s make a table! Blood type Antigen Antibody Blood transfusion possibilities A Anti B A, O B AB O

antibodies Antibodies are proteins that protect the body from foreign antigens There are many different classes that are found in different places and provide different functions However, they all have a common structure Y-shaped

Antibodies Structure Constant region Can be compared to the handle of a key Help determine which type of antibody you are dealing with Example: A house key looks very different from a car key

Variable region Form the antigen binding site that is uniquely shaped to “fit” certain antigens When an antibody recognizes an antigen, it elicits an immune response and can cause those foreign antigens to clump together This is called agglutination

Question Where have we heard this before???? Endocrine System!!!!!

Rh Factor Rh factor is just another antigen found on the surface of the RBCs We do not automatically carry anti-Rh+ factor We have to be exposed to it a first time in order to create these antibodies

Symbol Inventory A antigen = circle B antigen = triangle Rh antigen = cross

Whiteboard Practice!!!

Draw Me a Picture What would a type A+ RBC look like? What about a type A- RBC? What would an anti-Rh+ antibody look like? What are all of the possible blood types you can have?

Note: Rh+ people CAN receive Rh- blood Since the Rh- blood does not have any foreign antigens, the recipient doesn’t know the difference How is this similar to what we learned about the other blood types? Type O = universal donor Question: Could an Rh- person receive Rh+ blood? The Rh- people would recognize the Rh+ blood as being foreign

Pregnancy and Rh Rh is a big deal when it comes to Rh-mothers Mother and child often have exchanges of blood during labor If an Rh- mother is exposed to Rh+ blood, what happens? She starts to make antibodies, just like we do when we are exposed to the common cold What happens when she becomes pregnant with another Rh+ baby? She will begin to destroy all of the baby’s RBC because they are “foreign” to her Known as Rh disease

Rh Factor-RhoGAM to the Rescue! RhoGAM is an immune serum that prevents the production of anti-Rh+ antibodies Given to mothers carrying their second child who is Rh+

Blood Transfusions It is extremely important that the correct blood type is used during transfusions If two blood types mix, such as blood from a type A person and blood from a type B, the blood agglutinates This means it gets really thick and will damage the person’s kidneys This can lead to serious injuries and even death Similarly, if an Rh- person gets injected with Rh+ blood, the same results will happen

Blood Typing How they work Take a sample of blood Add Anti-A/B/R+ serum to the sample The serum is just antibodies; hence, adding anti-A serum would be adding anti-A antibodies View results If there is no change to the blood sample, then that means the sample is negative for the antigen Blood sample + Anti-A serum = no change MEANS that the sample does not contain the A antigen and is NOT type A or type AB blood If the sample agglutinates (gets clumpy), then it means that the sample is positive for the antigen Blood sample + Anti-A serum = agglutination MEANS that the sample contains the A antigen The sample could be type A or type AB blood More tests would be needed to decide between the 2