title: Buffy coat volume reduction for optimization of leucapheresis harvests produced by the autoMNC program.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Buffy coat (BC) volume reduction was evaluated in leucapheresis (LA) harvests due to the target monocyte yield and the red blood cell (RBC) content. A packed erythrocyte volume (PEV) of 7.5 ml should not be exceeded to avoid RBC debulking with loss of leucocytes (WBCs) and the monocyte fraction during monocyte counterflow elutriation, a next step of monocyte enrichment prior to cell culture.
  
  
  METHODS
  Two hundred and fifty-three 5-l leucaphereses (autoMNC program) performed in 102 healthy blood donors (24 female and 78 male donors) were retrospectively analysed. Different categories of BC volumes were compared due to the quality of the LA products measured by blood counts and flow cytometry.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Collection of maximum BC volume of 10 ml and more each collection cycle (product volume: 169 ± 21 ml) resulted in 1.58 ± 0·41 × 10e9 CD14(+) monocytes and high volume of packed erythrocyte (18.4 ± 8.8 ml). Low BC volume collection below 6 ml each collection cycle produced only 1.07 ± 0.40 × 10e9 CD14(+) monocytes but reduced PEV significantly by 64% (6.7 ± 4.1 ml).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  By reduction of the BC volume, the PEV in LA products could be reduced, which is a precondition for counterflow elutriation of monocytes. A BC volume between 7 and 8 ml per collection cycle should be adjusted to reduce PEV to 7.5 ml without relevant monocyte loss.
authors.affiliation: Department of Transfusion Medicine and Hemostaseology, University Hospital Erlangen, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Burk
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Erdmann
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Eckstein
authors.forename: E F
authors.initials: EF
authors.lastname: Strasser
mesh_terms: D058621:Blood Buffy Coat / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D006400:Hematocrit; D006801:Humans; D007937:Leukapheresis / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards*; D008297:Male
keywords: apheresis; cellular therapy; component production