INTRODUCTION TO

HEMATOLOGY 2
COMPILED BY: TOM ANTHONY A. TONGUIA, RMT
 MEGAKARYOCYTES

• IS THE LARGEST CELLS FOUND IN THE BONE MARROW.

• FINAL STAGE OF MEGAKARYOCYTE DEVELOPMENT.
• MULTILOBULAR
• MEGAKARYOCYTOPOIESIS PROCEEDS INITIALLY THROUGH A PHASE
CHARACTERIZED BY MITOTIC DIVISION OF A PROGENITOR CELL, FOLLOWED
BY A WAVE OF NUCLEAR ENDOREDUPLICATION.
 MEGAKARYOBLAST

• EARLIEST RECOGNIZABLE STAGE

• CONTAINS MITOCHONDRIA AND A PRIMITIVE ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM.
• THIS CELL DISPLAYS BLUNT PROTRUSIONS FROM ITS CYTOPLASMIC MEMBRANE AND
CONTAINS A MULTITUDE OF POLYRIBOSOMES AND CLEAR VACUOLES WITH DIAMETERS
AS LARGE AS 0.2 UM.
• NORMALLY FOUND ONLY IN THE BONE MARROW (1 TO 4 PER 1000 NUCLEATED CELLS).
• SINGLE, CENTRALLY LOCATED NUCLEUS OR MULTIPLE ROUND AND OVAL NUCLEI
CONTAINING SEVERAL NUCLEOLI AND DISTINCT BUT FINE, DELICATE CHROMATIN
STRANDS.
• THE CYTOPLASM STAINS A DIFFUSE BLUE, INDICATING ABSENCE OF SPECIFIC GRANULES.
• HAS A DIAMETER OF 15 TO 50 UM.
 PROMEGAKARYOCYTE

• CELL SIZE RANGES FROM 20 TO 80 UM.

• THE CELL MEMBRANE RETAINS ITS CHARACTERISTIC BLUNT PROTRUSIONS,
AND THE CYTOPLASM IS RICH IN POLYRIBOSOMES.
• THE NUMBER OF NUCLEAR LOBES BEGINS TO INCREASE BUT THERE IS ONLY
BARELY DETECTABLE MARGINATION OF THE CHROMATIN AROUND THE
NUCLEAR MEMBRANE.
• DEMARCATING MEMBRANE SYSTEM (DMS) FORMS BY INVAGINATION OF THE
PLASMA MEMBRANE.
 MEGAKARYOCYTE

• REPRESENTS THE MATURATION STAGE.

• THIS CELL IS ROUND AND IS EXPANDED IN VOLUME, WITH MULTIPLE NUCLEI AND EVEN,
PERIPHERAL MARGINS.
• THE ABUNDANT CYTOPLASM CONTAINS NUMEROUS SMALL, RATHER UNIFORMLY DISTRIBUTED
GRANULES WITH A REDDISH-BLUE HUE.
• CHROMATIN PATTERN IS LINEAR AND COARSE, WITH DISTINCT SPACES BETWEEN THE STRANDS.
• IT BEGINS TO CONTAIN ALL OF STRUCTURAL CONSTITUENTS OF A MEGAKARYOCYTE.
• IT IS THE KNOWN STAGE THAT DOES NOT ORDINARILY PRODUCE PLATELETS HOWEVER
MEGAKARYOCYTES WITH AT LEAST FOUR NUCLEI CAN PRODUCE PLATELETS.
 METAMEGAKARYOCYTE

• THE FOURTH STAGE OF MATURATION.

• VERY LARGE CELL, MANY TIME THE SIZE OF THE MATURE GRANULOCYTE, WITH A
DECREASED NUCLEAR-CYTOPLASMIC RATIO COMPARED WITH THE IMMATURE STAGES OF
DEVELOPMENTS.
• NUCLEUS IS MULTILOBED AND PLOIDY.
• THERE IS AGGREGATION OF GRANULAR MATERIAL IN THE CYTOPLASM.
• PLATELETS MAY BE SEEN ADHERING TO THE CELL MEMBERANE AS THEY BEGIN TO BREAK
AWAY FROM THE METAMEGAKARYOCYTE.
• CONTAIN PREDOMINANTLY POLYRIBOSOMES WITH OCCASIONAL MITOCHONDRIA.
 PLATELETS

• HAVE AN AVERAGE DIAMETER OF 2 TO 4 UM, WITH YOUNGER PLATELETS

BEING LARGER THAN OLDER ONES.
• HAS NO NUCLEUS
• CYTOPLASM IS LIGHT BLUE, WITH EVENLY DISPERSED, FINE RED-PURPLE
GRANULES.
 PLATELET FUNCTIONS

• ADHESION- PLATELETS ROLL AND CLING TO NONPLATELET SURFACES

(REVERSIBLE).
• AGGREGATION- PLATELETS ADHERE TO EACH OTHER (IRREVERSIBLE)
• SECRETION- PLATELETS DISCHARGE THE CONTENTS OF THEIR GRANULES
 PLATELET STRUCTURE

1. PERIPHERAL ZONE
A. GLYCOCALYX- PROVIDES A DISTINCT CONNECTION BETWEEN THE INSIDE OF THE
PLATELET AND ITS SURROUNDINGS.
• PROVIDES SURFACE TO WHICH SOME COAGULATION FACTORS MAY ADHERE, INCLUDING
FACTORS I, V, VIII, X, XI, XII, XIII.
• THICKNESS RANGING FROM 10 TO 50 NM
• RELATIVELY SMOOTH AND CONTAINS PORELIKE INDENTIONS THAT OPEN
COMMUNICATION CHANNELS INTO THE PLATELET CYTOPLASM.
 PLATELET STRUCTURE

B. PLASMA MEMBRANE- SERVES AS THE PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL BARRIER BETWEEN THE
INTRACELLULAR AND EXTRACELLULAR CONSTITUENTS OF THE PLATELET.
• WITHIN THIS MEMBRANE IS THE SODIUM/POTASSIUM ATPASE IONIC PUMP, WHICH MAINTAINS A
TRANSMEMBRANE IONIC GRADIENT.

2. SUBMEMBRANE AREA
A. MICROFILAMENTS- CONTRIBUTE TO THE REGULATION OF THE NORMAL PLATELET DISCOID
SHAPE.
• ACT AS A BASE FOR PSEUDOPOD FORMATION.
• INTERACT WITH OTHER CONTRACTILE PROTEINS TO MODULATE PLATELET ADHESION AND CLOT
RETRACTION AFTER ACTIVATION.
B. MICROTUBULE SYSTEM
 PLATELET STRUCTURE

3. SOL-GEL ZONE- SERVES AS A STABLE GEL COMPONENT TO REGULATE THE

ARRANGEMENT OF THE INTERNAL ORGANELLES AND MICROTUBULAR
SYSTEM WITHIN THE RESTING PLATELET BODY.
A. MICROFILAMENTS- PROVIDE THE CONTRACTILE FORCE AFTER ACTIVATION THAT
DIRECTS THE ORGANELLES TOWARD THE CENTER OF THE CELL.
• PLATELET FILAMENTS ARE APPROXIMATELY 50NM IN DIAMETER.
• CONTAINS TWO PROTEINS ACTIN AND MYOSIN.
 PLATELET STRUCTURE

B. MICROTUBULES- CONTRIBUTES SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE CYTOSKELETAL SUPPORT SYSTEM.

• PLAYS AN IMPORTANT IN THE CONTRACTILE RESPONSE OF PLATELETS TO STIMULATION.
• NOT REQUIRED FOR CONTRACTION.

4. ORGANELLE ZONE- CONSTITUTES THE MAJOR PROTEIN OF THE PLATELET

CYTOPLASM.
• INCLUDES ELECTRON-DENSE GRANULES, ALPHA GRANULES, PEROXISOMES, LYSOSOMES,
AND MITOCHONDRIA.
A. ELECTRON-DENSE GRANULES-
• 250 – 350NM IN DIAMETER AND CLASSIFIED AS SUCH BASED ON THEIR APPEARANCE IN
ELECTRON MICROSCOPE.
 PLATELET STRUCTURE

• CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING:

• ADP – INITIATES PLATELET AGGREGATION
• ATP
• GDP
• GTP
• CALCIUM
• MAGNESSIUM
• SEROTONIN
 PLATELET STRUCTURE

B. ALPHA GRANULES
• LARGER THAN DENSE GRANULES AND APPEAR SPHERICAL, ABOUT 300 – 500NM
IN DIAMETER.
• CONTAINS:
• BETA-THROMBOGLOBULIN AND PF4 – INHIBITS HEPARIN.
• PDGF – INCREASES SMOOTH MUSCLE CELL PROLIFERATION
• FIBRINOGEN – INCREASES / INDUCES COAGULATION, ADHESION, AND AGGREGATION ON
PLATELETS
• FVA – INCREASES PROTHROMBINASE COMPLEX
 PLATELET STRUCTURE

C. PEROXISOMES
D. LYSOSOMES – DIGEST CELL DEBRIS AT INJURY SITE AND INCREASES CLOT
LYSIS.
E. MITOCHONDRIA