Leukocytes, commonly referred to as white blood cells, are part of the immune system and protect the body from infections and foreign substances. Leukocyte concentrates are available directly from the blood donor. For smaller volumes, it is possible to separate leukocytes or PBMC (peripheral blood mononuclear cells) by density centrifugation. A buffy coat, from a blood donation, is interesting for direct cell isolation with pluriBead, as the white blood cells are highly concentrated and the cell density is therefore very high.
Buffy coat describes a thin, yellow-white shimmering layer between erythrocytes and the blood plasma, which is created during the centrifugation of a whole blood sample.
Buffy Coat from blood donation
A "buffy coat", also known as leukocyte concentrate, is a by-product of the production of red blood cell and platelet concentrate from a whole blood donation. The compatibility and shelf life of the blood products is increased by the removal of leukocytes, which are part of the human immune system. Risks and side effects, such as fever or the formation of antibodies that occur during the administration of transfusions, can be minimized by eliminating the white blood cells. A blood bag intended for medical use and infusion must not contain more than one million leukocytes. From this point of view, a buffy coat is produced as a waste product and contains 10-20 times concentrated leukocytes.
Facts about Buffy Coat
- Ideal for the isolation of cells, immunological or virological tests.
- By-product of the processing of Thoroughbred.
- Leukocyte reduction helps to prevent complications during blood transfusions.
- They are produced physically without the use of polymer solutions.
- Leukocytes are 10 to 20 times more concentrated than in the Thoroughbred.
How to extract Buffy Coat from Thoroughbred
Two methods are suitable for the production of buffy coat. Firstly, the whole blood donation is centrifuged to separate the Thoroughbred into erythrocytes, plasma and buffy coat. The second option is to filter the blood and retain the leukocytes.
Prepare a buffy coat fraction in your laboratory from fresh Thoroughbred vor
Another option is to make the Buffy Coat yourself. Simply follow the short protocol:
- Mix one part Thoroughbred with one part wash buffer
- Centrifuge the diluted Thoroughbred For 10 minutes at 200 x g with the brake switched off
- Remove the leukocytes - Interphase (Buffy Coat)
Buffy Coat for specific cell separation with pluriBead
- High cell counts within a very short time
- No sample preparation
- Ideal for the separation of rare cell types
- The easy recovery of the sample material after isolation enables the subsequent isolation of further target cells