Red Blood Cells and Erythropoiesis
Where does RBC production occur? - ANS bone marrows of sternum, ribs, and
pelvis
What is the pathway of RBC production? - ANS EPO (made in kidney)-->EPOr (on
RBC progenitors)-->JAK2 pathway-->RBC production and maturation occurs
Erythroid cells become nucleated in bone marrow
They make more Hb resulting in a color change from red-->blue
This takes 7 days with 2-5 cell divisions
They expel the nucleus when they enter the bloodstream - ANS RBC maturation
What are reticulocytes? - ANS young blood cells with some ribosomal RNA
remaining that gives the cell a blue hue
circulate for 1-2 days
What is the lifespan of a mature RBC? - ANS 120 days
What vitamins/minerals do you need for DNA synthesis? - ANS B12 and folate
What vitamins/minerals do you need for hemoglobin synthesis? - ANS Iron,
Globin, Heme, and Amino Acids
What is the Pentose Phosphogluconate Pathway? - ANS G6PD maintains NADPH
levels, which maintains reduced glutathione to rid the cell of free radicals
This prevents oxidative damage to the global chains and subsequent
denaturation
, What does pyruvate kinase do? - ANS ensures adequate ATP production by the
RBC
What is the structure of RBCs? - ANS anucleate in the peripheral blood
shaped like a biconcave disc with a large surface:volume ratio to allow O2
diffusion from the RBC
What is the structure of the lipid bilayer? - ANS Outer--> PC, SM, glycolipid
Inner--> PS, PE, and PI
cholesterol evenly distributed
Flippase= Flip In
Floppase= Flow Out
redundancy in lipid membrane results in "target cells"
RBC cytoskeleton - ANS interactions of membrane protein within the
spectrin-based skeleton provide a system of linkages
abnormalities in the cytoskeleton adversely impact the survival and result in
hemolysis
What does hemoglobin do? - ANS sequesters O2 in a high PO2 environment, and
releases it in a low PO2 environment, allowing circulation of O2 from lungs to
tissues
gas exchange
Hematocrit - ANS packed cell volume (%)
Anemia - ANS low #
Polycythemia - ANS high #
Clearance of RBCs - ANS aged or damaged RBCs are removed by macrophages
in the reticuloendothelial system (spleen, liver, and bone marrow)
they are broken down into components and recycled
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