RED BLOOD CELL

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does red blood cell mean? 

• RED BLOOD CELL (noun)
  The noun RED BLOOD CELL has 1 sense:

1. a mature blood cell that contains hemoglobin to carry oxygen to the bodily tissues; a biconcave disc that has no nucleus

  Familiarity information: RED BLOOD CELL used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• RED BLOOD CELL (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A mature blood cell that contains hemoglobin to carry oxygen to the bodily tissues; a biconcave disc that has no nucleus

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Synonyms:

erythrocyte; RBC; red blood cell

Hypernyms ("red blood cell" is a kind of...):

blood cell; blood corpuscle; corpuscle (either of two types of cells (erythrocytes and leukocytes) and sometimes including platelets)

Meronyms (substance of "red blood cell"):

haemoglobin; Hb; hemoglobin (a hemoprotein composed of globin and heme that gives red blood cells their characteristic color; function primarily to transport oxygen from the lungs to the body tissues)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "red blood cell"):

macrocyte; megalocyte (abnormally large red blood cell (associated with pernicious anemia))

megaloblast (abnormally large red blood cell present in pernicious anemia and folic acid deficiency)

acanthocyte (an abnormal red blood cell that has thorny projections of protoplasm)

microcyte (an abnormally small red blood cell (less than 5 microns in diameter))

reticulocyte (an immature red blood cell containing a network of filaments or granules)

sickle cell (an abnormal red blood cell that has a crescent shape and an abnormal form of hemoglobin)

siderocyte (an abnormal red blood cell containing granules of iron not bound in hemoglobin)

spherocyte (an abnormal spherical red blood cell)

target cell (an abnormal red blood cell with the appearance of a dark ring surrounding a dark center; associated with anemia)

 Context examples 

A measure of the number of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets in the blood.

(Blood cell count, NCI Dictionary)

Red blood cells live about 120 days, platelets 6 days and white cells less than a day.

(Blood, NIH)

This gene plays a role in red blood cell morphology.

(ANK1 Gene, NCI Thesaurus)

A condition in which the number of red blood cells is below normal.

(Anemia, NCI Dictionary)

The work showed how the splenic slit determines the size and shape distributions of healthy red blood cells.

(How the spleen keeps blood healthy, NIH)

In normal red blood cells, the NADPH produced by glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase is used to regenerate glutathione and protect cell membranes.

(Oxidative Reactions of the Pentose Phosphate Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

Substance formed when red blood cells are broken down.

(Bilirubin, NCI Dictionary)

This protein plays a role in the determination of red blood cell shape.

(Ankyrin-1, NCI Thesaurus)

A laboratory test to identify antibodies that can bind to the surface of red blood cells or platelets and destroy them.

(Antiglobulin test, NCI Dictionary)

Bone marrow is the soft, sponge-like tissue in the center of most large bones that produces white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets.

(Autologous bone marrow, NCI Dictionary)