Loss of the ability to generate large burst-forming unit-like megakaryocytic colonies from thawed cord blood in semisolid cultures after short term suspension culture.

Background And Objectives: Total colony-forming cells from thawed cord blood units (CBUs) include megakaryocytic colony-forming units (CFU-Mks), which survive the freezing process. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether different megakaryocytic progenitors from unseparated CBUs survive the freezing process and a short-term liquid culture.

Materials And Methods: Thawed samples of CBUs were cultured in liquid medium.

Growth of erythroid cells from thawed unseparated cord blood in vitro without exogenous erythropoietin.

Introduction: Previous erythroid cell cultures have depended on added serum or erythropoietin. In this paper, the growth of erythroid cells from thawed unseparated cord blood units in vitro without serum or exogenous erythropoietin is reported.

Methods: Thawed volume-reduced cord blood was cultured in conditions designed to support the megakaryocytic lineage, with thrombopoietin and interleukins 3 and 6.

Sensitivity of assays for the detection of HPA-1a antibodies: results of an international workshop demonstrating the impact of cation chelation from integrin αIIbβ3 on three widely used assays.

Background And Objectives: HPA-1a antibodies account for 70-80% of cases of fetal-neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (FNAIT) in Caucasians. However, numerous workshops have demonstrated variability in their detection. We recently showed that exposure of αIIbβ3 to ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) affected binding of many anti-αIIbβ3 monoclonal, and HPA-1a allo-, antibodies; this adversely affected sensitivity of the monoclonal antibody-specific immobilization of platelet antigens (MAIPA) assay and indirect platelet immunofluorescence test (PIFT).

Fetal intracranial haemorrhages caused by fetal and neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia: an observational cohort study of 43 cases from an international multicentre registry.

Objective: To characterise pregnancies where the fetus or neonate was diagnosed with fetal and neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (FNAIT) and suffered from intracranial haemorrhage (ICH), with special focus on time of bleeding onset.

Design: Observational cohort study of all recorded cases of ICH caused by FNAIT from the international No IntraCranial Haemorrhage (NOICH) registry during the period 2001-2010.

Setting: 13 tertiary referral centres from nine countries across the world.

Association of CFU-Mk with total colony-forming units in thawed cord blood units.

Background And Objectives: Cord blood unit (CBU) total colony-forming unit (CFU) count both pre-cryo and post-thaw has been shown to be associated with platelet (PLT) engraftment. Pre-cryo CBUs show good growth of megakaryocytic CFUs (CFU-Mk); however, CFU-Mk have rarely been studied in post-thaw CBUs.

Materials And Methods: Nucleated cells (NCs) from post-thaw CB were cultured in a collagen-based assay designed to support growth of CFU-Mk.