Elevated Ca²+ influx-inducing activity toward mast cells in pretransfusion sera from patients who developed transfusion-related adverse reactions.

Background: Type I allergic reactions such as urticaria-like manifestations constitute a large percentage of transfusion-related adverse events. Along with donor factors, patient factors might be involved in these reactions. Sera from some patients with chronic idiopathic urticaria show histamine-releasing activity (HRA).

Reduction in adverse reactions to platelets by the removal of plasma supernatant and resuspension in a new additive solution (M-sol).

Background: Leukodepletion reduces but does not eliminate adverse reactions to platelet concentrate (PC). As an alternative strategy, plasma reduction or washing of platelets should be considered. However, the efficacy of this strategy is still unclear.

Generation of a considerable number of functional mast cells with a high basal level of FcepsilonRI expression from cord blood CD34+ cells by co-culturing them with bone marrow stromal cell line under serum-free conditions.

The number of mast cells (MC) that can be obtained from tissue is limited, making it difficult to study the role of MC. Cultured MC derived from cord blood (CB)-CD34(+) cells proliferate well compared with those derived from adult CD34(+) cells; however, they have been reported to be phenotypically or functionally immature regardless of culture system. For example, very few cells express FcepsilonRI.

Donor selection in Japan: a trial of new criteria with predonation haemoglobin testing.

Background And Objectives: In Japan, eligibility for blood donation depends on blood specific gravity, which does not directly measure blood haemoglobin. Additionally, the criteria are not based on normal values. Therefore, we investigated the feasibility of predonation screening by using actual haemoglobin levels, and adopted a new criterion based on the normal range for men.

Effects of ultraviolet B irradiation on cell-cell interaction; implication of morphological changes and actin filaments in irradiated cells.

We studied the effects of ultraviolet B (UV-B) irradiation on cell-cell interactions using mouse lymphoma RMA cells and T cell hybridoma HTB-176.10. RMA cells act as stimulators by presenting H-2Kb surface antigens to HTB-176.