I. RBCs questions

what don’t RBC’s have?

organelles like cytoplasm or membrane

How do rbc’s affect blood?

Viscosity, increase thickness

What is hemopoesis?

Blood formation

What are the 3 hematopoiesis & their hormones

(& location for 2)

1. Erythropoiesis: erythropoietin in kidneys

2. Thrombopoiesis: thrombopoietin in liver

3. Leukopoiesis: interleukins & colony stimulating factors

What are the 4 Erythropoiesis steps?

• Hematopoietic stem cell →

• Myeloid stem cell →

• Reticulocyte (young rbc) →

• Erythrocyte 

How long does it take for erythrocytes to fully mature & circulate?

• fully mature: 1-2 days

• circulate: 100-120 days

Normal Ranges for Hematocrit and Reticulocyte count?

Hematocrit: 45%

Reticulocyte: 1-2% of total rbc

What does the Reticulocyte count tell you?

How fast erythropoiesis occurs

What are the 2 parts of Hemoglobin & what kind of portions are they?

1. Heme: oxygen binding portion

2. Globin: protein (amino acid) portion

What is located in the center of each heme?

Iron

What are the 2 parts of “Globin"

2 alpha and 2 beta chains

How many oxygen molecules can 1 hemoglobin molecule carry?

1 hemoglobin molecule can carry 4 oxygen molecules.

How many hemoglobin molecules are in 1 red blood cell (RBC)?

1 RBC has 250 million hemoglobin molecules.

How many oxygen molecules can 1 red blood cell (RBC) carry?

1 RBC can carry 1 billion oxygen molecules.

Where is the graveyard for RBC’s?

Spleen 🪦

What in the Spleen engulfs rbc’s & after how long?

• After 120 days,

• Macrophages gobble rbcs

What is iron stored and transferred as?

• stored as ferritin

• transported as transferrin

Where is bilirubin secreted and what is it converted to?

• Secreted into intestine via bile,

• converted to stercobilin, excreted as brown feces