title: AANA journal course: update for nurse anesthetists--the ruddy globule: the erythrocyte--its biology, chemistry, and functional variations.
abstract: Red blood cells were first observed in the mid-1600s and termed ruddy globules for their conspicuous shape and color. Since that time, the functional significance of this extraordinary membranous pouch of proteins and electrolytes has been carefully detailed. The architecture of the red blood cell, the biochemistry of hemoglobin, the mechanics of the oxygen-hemoglobin affinity-altering diphosphoglycerate compounds, and the variants of hemoglobin are reviewed. Far from being a simple transport vehicle of oxygen to and from tissues, the red blood cell is a multifunctional entity whose absence would make life as we know it impossible.
authors.affiliation: Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Va., USA.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lahaye
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Biddle
mesh_terms: D019794:2,3-Diphosphoglycerate / Q000097:blood; D000136:Acid-Base Equilibrium / Q000502:physiology; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001692:Biological Transport / Q000502:physiology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004163:Diphosphoglyceric Acids / Q000097:blood; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004920:Erythropoiesis / Q000502:physiology; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000032:analysis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D009719:Nurse Anesthetists / Q000193:education; D010100:Oxygen / Q000502:physiology; D010108:Oxyhemoglobins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology; D012016:Reference Values
chemical_list: D004163:Diphosphoglyceric Acids; D006454:Hemoglobins; D010108:Oxyhemoglobins; D019794:2,3-Diphosphoglycerate; D010100:Oxygen