Biomedical technology

PAINTing a wound-healing ink into cuts with a 3D-printing pen

The body is pretty good at healing itself, though more severe wounds can require bandages or stitches. But researchers publishing in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces have developed a wound-healing ink that can actively ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

Q and A: What is a tonsillectomy and who needs one?

My 4-year-old son has had many episodes of painful sore throats, and his doctor recommended that his tonsils be removed. Why do kids have more trouble with their tonsils? Is there a right age to have the surgery done? I've ...

Medical research

An elusive mechanism of wasting syndrome cachexia revealed

Researchers from the Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics at Koc University in Turkey and the Pole of Endocrinology, Diabetology and Nutrition, Institute of Experimental and Clinical Research at Université Catholique ...

Immunology

Understanding immunological memory

Humans encounter innumerable pathogenic bacteria, viruses and other microbes in their day-to-day activities. While infections from some pathogens can be easily cleared by the innate immune system, others can evade this first ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Neuroscientist offers insight into how loneliness can affect health

Efforts are underway to address the "epidemic of loneliness and isolation" affecting the country, as recently addressed by the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy who is laying out a "National Strategy to Advance Social ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

Researchers uncover new details on rare immune disease

In an 11-year study, researchers at the National Institutes of Health have further characterized idiopathic CD4 lymphocytopenia (ICL), a rare immune deficiency that leaves people vulnerable to infectious diseases, autoimmune ...

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White blood cell

White blood cells (WBCs), or leukocytes (also spelled "leucocytes"), are cells of the immune system defending the body against both infectious disease and foreign materials. Five different and diverse types of leukocytes exist, but they are all produced and derived from a multipotent cell in the bone marrow known as a hematopoietic stem cell. Leukocytes are found throughout the body, including the blood and lymphatic system.

The number of leukocytes in the blood is often an indicator of disease. There are normally between 4×109 and 1.1×1010 white blood cells in a litre of blood, making up approximately 1% of blood in a healthy adult. An increase in the number of leukocytes over the upper limits is called leukocytosis, and in leukopenia, this number is much lower than the lower limit. The physical properties of leukocytes, such as volume, conductivity, and granularity, may change due to activation, the presence of immature cells, or the presence of malignant leukocytes in leukemia.

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