Unit 1 Case Study 1
Sara Haziza
ITT Technical Institute
Michael Naji

You asked me a few questions about the blood in our body. I thought I would answer them all at once in written form. The first question you asked was about our hematocrit levels and the significance of a lower than normal level. Now, our hematocrit determines the volume of red blood cells in our body. It is looked at in terms of percentages like 50% or 60%. The normal levels are different in males and females. The normal levels in a male 40-54% and in females it is 38-46%. If someone has a lower than normal hematocrit they are considered to have a type of anemia. If someone is said to have a bacterial infection then their white blood cells, neutrophils particularly, will increase which will lower the red blood cells in your body. This will then lower their hematocrit percentage.
You asked what is Erythropoiesis? This is the production of red blood cells. Erythropoiesis is speeded up when oxygen delivery to the kidneys falls and slows down when there is sufficient oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood. Lymphocytes develop a little bit differently than other formed elements. B-lymphocytes develop in red bone marrow, T-lymphocytes develop in red bone marrow and mature in the thymus; the other formed elements develop in red bone marrow (Jenkins, 2013). Also, you were wondering what would happen If a person with type B blood were given a transfusion of type O blood. Nothing would happen because Type B blood has anti-A antibody and type O blood has both anti-A and anti-B antibodies.
The names and functions of the 5 white blood cells based on their descriptions are as follwed: Lymphocytes are the major fighters in immune responses like viruses, fungi, cancers, and some allergic reactions and bacteria. Basophils release heparin, histmine and serotonin. They are involved in allergic reactions and inflammatory responses. Monocytes clean up cellular debris following an infection by phagocytosis. Neutrophils are active in phagocytosis. They act as an antibiotic against bacteria and fungi. Lastly, eosinophils help fight against the effects of histamines and also phagocytize antigen-antibody complexes and certain parasitic worms.
The last few answers to your questions are as followed. Leukocytes would be higher in an individual who has been infected with a