1. Everybody's Antibodies
Brittany Hancock
NSF NMGK-8
University of Mississippi
April 2006
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

2. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Circulatory System
Parts of the Circulatory System:
Heart
Blood Vessels
Blood
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

3. Circulatory System: Heart
Heart
Four chamber muscular organ
About the size of your fist
Pumps the blood through the blood vessels of the body
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

4. Circulatory System: Blood Vessels
Blood vessels - system of connected tubes that deliver blood to and from the heart and the body’s cells.
Types of blood vessels:
Arteries - carry oxygenated blood away from the heart.
Capillaries - very small and deliver oxygenated blood from the arteries to cells in the body and then carry the deoxygenated blood and waste to the veins.
Veins - carry deoxygenated blood and waste back to the heart.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

5. Circulatory System: Blood Vessels
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

6. Circulatory System: Blood
Functions of the blood:
Flows through our circulatory system delivering oxygen and food to all our body cells
Carries away carbon dioxide and other waste products from cells
Fights infections
Keeps our body temperature normal (98.6 oF)
Clots broken blood vessels and skin
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

7. What is blood? Blood is a fluid tissue. Composed of: Plasma
Red blood cells
White blood cells
Platelets
SEM Image of Red Blood cell, Platelet, and a White Blood Cell.
SEM Image of Red Blood cell, Platelet, and a White Blood Cell.
Plasma
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

8. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Plasma
Plasma is the straw colored liquid in the blood.
Contains mostly water (~ 90%)
Composes ~ 55% of the total volume of the blood in the body
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

9. Red Blood Cells (Erythrocytes)
Red blood cells contain a protein called hemoglobin.
Hemoglobin is an oxygen carrying protein that gives the blood a red color when oxygenated.
Main function:
carry oxygen and remove carbon dioxide from the cells in the body
Mature red blood cells are flat and have a disk like shape with a thin concave middle giving the cell a “doughnut” appearance.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

10. White Blood Cells (Leukocytes)
White blood cells play a major role in our immune system which fights infection in our bodies.
There are five different kinds of white blood cells and each type serves a different function.
Some white blood cells actually engulf bacteria.
Other types produce antibodies (proteins) that destroy bacteria and viruses.
In general, these cells are much bigger than red blood cells.
There are fewer of these cells than red blood cells in our blood.
This is an image of the most common white blood cell, neutrophils. These cells engulf bacteria that try to enter the bloodstream. The pink and purple cells are neutrophils and the red disk like shapes are red blood cells.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

11. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Platelets
Platelets are the smallest component of the blood.
They are disk like in shape.
Observe how small the platelets are compared to the white blood cells (purple) and the red blood cells (light red).
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

12. Platelets and Blood Clots
Platelets help stop bleeding by secreting a hormone that constricts the blood vessels and helps form a “spider web” to trap red bloods cells. This clots cuts and tears in a blood vessel or skin.
Blood Clot
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

13. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Blood Type
Your blood type depends on the antigens and antibodies your blood contains.
Why is blood type important?
If a patient needs blood, the doctor must know the patient’s blood type. Giving a patient the wrong blood type can cause the blood to clot (medical term: agglutinate) which can result in serious illness and possibly death.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

14. Discovery of Blood Type
The blood types were discovered by Karl Landsteiner at the University of Vienna in 1901.
He was researching why blood transfusions sometimes caused death and sometimes saved the life of the patient.
In 1930 he received the Nobel Prize for his discovery.
Karl Landsteiner
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

15. Why are there blood types?
Red blood cells contain antigens located on the surface of the cell.
Plasma contains antibodies that react with foreign objects in the blood and cleanse the blood. These antibodies are produced to act against a particular foreign object. Therefore, antibodies are specific when acting against the antigen.
The combination of antigens and antibodies that the red blood cells and plasma contain or do not contain, determines your blood type.
Medically important antigens are A, B, O, and Rh factor.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

16. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Antigens & Antibodies
Illustration of Red Blood Cells with Different Antigens
Antigen A
Antigen B
Rh Factor
Illustration of Antibodies possible in the Plasma
Antibody A
Antibody B
Antibody Rh
These antigens can bind to the specific antibody.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

17. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Blood Type Chart
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

18. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Blood Types
There are 8 possible blood types:
A+ B AB+ O+
A- B AB- O-
Type A people have A antigens on their red blood cells and B antibodies (these act against B antigens) in their plasma.
Type B have B antigens on their red blood cells and A antibodies (act against A antigen) in their plasma.
Type AB people have both A & B antigens present on their red blood cells and no antibodies in their plasma.
Type O people have no antigens present on their red blood cells, but have both A & B antibodies (act against A and B antigens) in their plasma.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

19. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Rh Factor
Rh factor is also an antigen on the red blood cells. If a person has Rh on their cells, they are Rh+, but if they don’t have it they are Rh-. This is identified by a + or - following the blood typing letter.
A person with Rh- blood does not necessarily have the Rh antibody present in their plasma, but if they receive blood from an Rh+ person it is possible to develop this antibody against Rh factor and cause the blood to clot. Therefore, Rh- people should never receive blood from an Rh+ person.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

20. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
How to type blood:
Take a sample of the patient’s blood.
Obtain three different serums, one containing antibody A, another with antibody B, and another with antibody Rh factor.
Add some of the patient’s blood sample into each serum.
Observe the serums to see which serum clots (agglutinates).
If the serum clots, then the patient has that blood type.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

21. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Blood Donation
If a person with blood type A were to receive B blood (B antigen on the red blood cells), then the foreign red blood cells would be attacked by the B antibodies in the blood type A’s plasma.
Type O- is called the universal donor because they can donate blood to any type.
Type AB+ is referred to as the universal receiver because they can receive blood from any type.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

22. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Blood Types
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

23. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Blood Typing Video
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

24. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
Blood Donation Facts
In Mississippi, about 60% of the state’s population is eligible to give blood, but less than 4% do give blood.
Some examples of the uses of donated blood are patients who have been in automobile accidents, who have cancer, and patients that undergo surgery.
From 1 unit of blood, doctors can extract red blood cells, platelets, and plasma.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8

25. NSF North Mississippi GK-8
References
HUMAN BLOOD: An Introduction to Its Components and Types. ABO Blood Types. Accessed 2006 March
Library.Thinkquest.org. Blood – The River of Life . Accessed 2006 April 4.
Nobelprize.org. Blood Groups, Blood Typing, and Blood Transfusions. Accessed 2006 March 21.
Nobelprize.org. Blood Groups, Blood Typing, and Blood Transfusions. Accessed 2006 March 21. Blood Typing Interactive Movie:
Roodman, G. David. “Blood.” Work Book Encyclopedia vol 2. Chicago, Il; ed.
NSF North Mississippi GK-8