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Red blood cells (RBCs), referred to as erythrocytes (from Ancient Greek erythros 'red' and kytos 'hollow vessel', with -cyte translated as 'cell' in modern usage) in academia and medical publishing, also known as red cells, [1] erythroid cells, and rarely haematids, are the most common type of blood cell and the vertebrate's principal means of delivering oxygen (O 2) to the body tissues—via ...
A feedback loop involving erythropoietin helps regulate the process of erythropoiesis so that, in non-disease states, the production of red blood cells is equal to the destruction of red blood cells and the red blood cell number is sufficient to sustain adequate tissue oxygen levels but not so high as to cause sludging, thrombosis, or stroke ...
Hemolysins or haemolysins are lipids and proteins that cause lysis of red blood cells by disrupting the cell membrane.Although the lytic activity of some microbe-derived hemolysins on red blood cells may be of great importance for nutrient acquisition, many hemolysins produced by pathogens do not cause significant destruction of red blood cells during infection.
A red blood cell in a hypotonic solution, causing water to move into the cell A red blood cell in a hypertonic solution, causing water to move out of the cell. Hemolysis or haemolysis (/ h iː ˈ m ɒ l ɪ s ɪ s /), [1] also known by several other names, is the rupturing of red blood cells (erythrocytes) and the release of their contents into surrounding fluid (e.g. blood plasma).
Hemoglobin is an iron-containing protein that gives red blood cells their color and facilitates transportation of oxygen from the lungs to tissues and carbon dioxide from tissues to the lungs to be exhaled. [3] Red blood cells are the most abundant cell in the blood, accounting for about 40-45% of its volume.
Apoptosis is the programmed cell death of superfluous or potentially harmful cells in the body. It is an energy-dependent process mediated by proteolytic enzymes called caspases, which trigger cell death through the cleaving of specific proteins in the cytoplasm and nucleus. [13] The dying cells shrink and condense into apoptotic bodies.
In a healthy person, a red blood cell survives 90 to 120 days in the circulation, so about 1% of human red blood cells break down each day. [ 38 ] [ unreliable medical source? ] The spleen (part of the reticulo-endothelial system ) is the main organ that removes old and damaged RBCs from the circulation. [ 2 ]
The non-membrane bounded organelles, also called large biomolecular complexes, are large assemblies of macromolecules that carry out particular and specialized functions, but they lack membrane boundaries. Many of these are referred to as "proteinaceous organelles" as their main structure is made of proteins. Such cell structures include: