Histology
Lecture 11 Bone Marrow
Bone Marrow Basics
• Blood cells have short life span, must
be constantly replaced
• Stem cells in hematopoietic organs
• Bone marrow primary site
• Many lymphocytes produced in
lymphoid organs
• Bone marrow found in long bones and
spongy bone
2 Basic Types of Bone Marrow
• Red (active): containing many stem
cells and erythrocyte precursor cells
• Yellow (less active): rich in adipocytes,
few differentiating blood cells
– can be transformed into red bone marrow
by chronic hemorrhage or hypoxia
Red Bone Marrow 1
• Found in sternum, vertebrae, ribs,
clavicles, pelvis, long bones, skull
• Stroma: 2 cell types
– adventitial (reticular cells) - resemble
fibroblasts w/ larger, euchromatic nuclei
– macrophages - phagocytosis of extruded
nuclei from erythroblasts
Red Bone Marrow 2
• Hematopoietic cords: strands of cells
differentiating and maturing
• Erythroblastic islands
• Granulopoietic cells
• Mature cells enter circulation by
crossing sinusoid wall (endothelium,
incomplete basal lamina, adventitial
cells)
Red Bone Marrow
Bone Marrow Functions
• Production of blood cells
– erythrocytes, granulocytes, monocytes, and
platelets released into circulation
– lymphocytes require additional maturing
• Destruction of old erythrocytes
– carried out by macrophages in spleen, liver and
bone marrow
• Storing Fe from breakdown of hemoglobin
– stored in macrophages and erythroblasts
Yellow Bone Marrow
• Adipocytes, macrophages,
undifferentiated mesenchyme, reticular
cells
• Serves as storage area for nutrients
(fat) and reserve hematopoietic tissue
Erythrocyte Development
• Proerythroblast
• Basophilic erythroblast
• Polychromatophilic erythroblast
• Orthochromatophilic erythroblast
(normoblast)
• Reticulocyte
• Erythrocyte
Cellular Changes During
Differentiation
• Decrease cell volume
• Shrinkage/loss of nucleolus
• Decrease nuclear volume
• Increased nuclear density to pyknosis
• Decreased cytoplasmic basophilia
• Increased eosinophilia (inc. hemoglobin)
Proerythroblast
• 14-19 µm dia
• Large spherical nucleus
• Basophilic cytoplasm (ribosomes)
Basophilic Erythroblast
•12-17 µm
•Increased cytoplasmic basophilia
•Increased nuclear heterochromatin
Proerythroblast Basophilic erythroblast
Polychromatophilic Erythroblast
• 12-15 µm dia
• Cytoplasmic patches of eosinophilia
• Nucleus smaller and heterochromatic
Orthochromatophilic Erythroblast
• 8-12 µm dia
• Eosinophilic cytoplasm
• Nucleus shrunken and pyknotic
Polychromatophilic Orthochromatophilic
erythroblast erythroblast
Reticulocytes
• 9 µm dia
• Nucleus extruded
• Some organelles still present
• Basophilic granularity in cytoplasm
• Very hard to find in slides; special stains needed
• During final maturation organelles break down
Erythrocyte Differentiation
• Formation from stem cell = 7 days
• Life span 120 days
• 200 X 109 made per day; 2 million per
second
• Erythropoietin: hormone made in
kidney; increases rbc production
Granulocyte Differentiation
• Neutrophil production = 11 days
• Myeloblast
• Promyelocyte
• Myelocyte
• Metamyelocyte
• Band cell
Myeloblast
• 10-12 µm dia
• Large spherical nucleus
Promyelocyte
• <15 µm
• Spherical nucleus
• Cytoplasm basophilic
• Azurophilic granules
Myelocyte
• 10-12 µm dia
• Nucleus ovoid, eccentric
• Granule formation beginning
Metamyelocyte
• Nucleus has deep indentation
• Increased chromatin density
• Granules in cytoplasm
Band Cell
• Horseshoe-shaped nucleus, eccentric
• Increased number in circulation usually means infection
• Occasionally seen in peripheral blood
Neutrophil Details
• Production takes 11 days
• Formation in bone marrow 7 days
• Stored 4 days for final maturation
• Many may be adhering to walls of
vessels in different tissues
• Enter connective tissue by passing
through walls of venules by diapedesis
• Survive <4 days in tissues
Lymphocytes
• Form in lymphoid tissues: thymus,
spleen, lymph nodes, tonsils, lymphoid
nodules in digestive and respiratory
tract
Monocytes
• Large promonocyte
• Circulate about 8 hrs then enter tissue
• May function there for several weeks
Platelet Formation
• Form in red bone marrow
• Megakaryocyte cytoplasm fragments
• Megakaryocyte up to 150 µm dia
– highly lobulated nucleus
• Lifespan ~ 10 days
Red bone marrow with megakaryocytes
