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Some characteristics of human red blood cells separated according to their size: A comparison with density‐fractionated red blood cells
Author(s) -
Vaysse Jenny,
Vassy Roger,
Eclache Virginie,
Gattegno Liliane,
Bladier Dominique,
Pilardeau Paul
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
american journal of hematology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.456
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1096-8652
pISSN - 0361-8609
DOI - 10.1002/ajh.2830280405
Subject(s) - centrifugation , fractionation , red blood cell , in vivo , hemoglobin , differential centrifugation , buoyant density , chromatography , chemistry , biology , biochemistry , genetics , dna
During their in vivo ageing, red blood cells (RBC) increase in density and become smaller. Age‐defined RBC subpopulations are usually collected by centrifugation. A fractionation according to RBC volume has been proposed as an improved alternative to such age separation. Because a few data reported in the literature indicate some discrepancies between the two methods, blood samples were separated either by centrifugation or by counterflow centrifugation, and some characteristics of the RBC thus fractionated were studied. The enzyme activities decrease either when the density rises or when the volume (MCV) decreases. However, the comparison of other RBC characteristics strongly suggests that these two procedures do not lead to the collection of the same RBC subpopulations: for instance, the hemoglobin content increases when the MCV rises, whereas it remains constant whatever the RBC density is. With radiolabelled cells, it is shown 1) that the most dense RBC are recovered in all the size‐separated RBC subpopulations, even though they tend to concentrate in the fractions with the largest MCV, and 2) that the smallest RBC are almost fairly distributed in all the RBC subpopulations, whatever their density, whereas the largest RBC are mainly, but not exclusively, present in the high‐density fractions. Thus, fractionation according to size does not match separation according to density. Taken together with results from in vivo experiments carried out in mice and with the fact that reticulocytes are present in all the size‐separated fractions, these data suggest that counterflow centrifugation may be a very questionable procedure to achieve a RBC fractionation according to age and therefore that RBC volume might not be a reliable criterion of RBC age.