Blood is a viscous liquid that fills the blood vessels with it. It rushes throughout all the organs of the body as a result of the contraction of the heart muscle. The blood transports oxygen from the lungs to the tissues, and also transports nutrients to the cells in order to produce the energy needed for the body. Blood consists of: plasma, cells Red blood, white blood cells, and platelets, so in this article we will introduce you to the function of one of the basic blood components, which is platelets.
Platelets
They are cells, or flattened parts of the cytoplasm, with a diameter of approximately three nanometers, and they have many shapes. Platelets do not include a nucleus or cellular muscles. Their annual lifespan ranges from seven to ten days, and they have a high ability to bond and adhere. Some of them, which makes them play a necessary role in the blood clotting process, and their number ranges from 150,000 to 400,000 thousand per cubic millimeter.
Platelet function
The primary function of platelets is to stop bleeding by forming clots, or clots, that stop the rushing of blood as a result of exposure to an injury. They also secrete some necessary substances, such as adrenaline, histamine, and serotonin, which play an important role in the contractions that occur in blood vessels, in addition to their contribution to blood vessels. The process of phagocytosis by binding to microbes that are ingested by phagocytic cells.
It is possible to donate platelets to others, and the percentage of platelets that can be donated in a normal situation ranges between 200-400 milliliters, and the donation process takes approximately sixty minutes, and occurs by drawing blood from which the platelets are extracted, and then it is returned to the person again using a device. Private medical.
It is possible for the percentage of platelets to decrease in large quantities, and this is accompanied by the appearance of a skin rash with red spots, most often found on the feet and ankles. This deficiency results in internal bleeding, such as stomach bleeding, or bleeding inside the brain, and the reason for this deficiency is due to injury to the individual. Viruses, such as smallpox and cold viruses, or a malfunction in the immune system, or taking medications without consulting a doctor, or as a result of viral vaccinations.
blood types
In the past, especially before the beginning of the twentieth century, it was believed that blood was only one type, and similar among all people. When attempts were made to transfuse blood from healthy individuals to other patients, the sick person often died, and as a result, blood transfusion was prohibited for a long time in Europe. This remained the case until the Austrian scientist Karl Landsteiner discovered blood antigens in 1902, after noticing that patients died when blood was transfused to them. Antigens are glycoproteins found on the surface of red blood cells. Later, scientists divided the blood groups into four sections: : A,B,AB,O.