Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 13, 2026
Preparation and Pathogen Inactivation of Double Dose Buffy Coat Platelet Products using the INTERCEPT Blood System
Published on: December 7, 2012
Cytokine generation in stored platelet concentrates
1Department of Laboratory Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.
Insights
Stored platelet concentrates (PCs) can contain elevated levels of interleukin-8 (IL-8), a cytokine linked to transfusion reactions. White cell reduction filters effectively reduce IL-8 and IL-1 beta generation during PC storage.
Area of Science:
- Transfusion Medicine
- Immunology
- Hematology
Background:
- Cytokines are implicated in nonhemolytic transfusion reactions.
- Stored blood components may be a source of these cytokines.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the presence and levels of specific cytokines (IL-1 beta, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-alpha) in stored platelet concentrates (PCs).
- To determine the impact of storage duration and white cell count on cytokine levels.
- To evaluate the efficacy of white cell reduction filters in mitigating cytokine generation.
Main Methods:
- Plasma from 120 stored PCs (2- to 5-day-old) was analyzed for IL-1 beta, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-alpha.
- Sequential sampling of 17 PCs over 7 days assessed IL-8 changes.
- Comparison of PCs with and without white cell reduction.
Main Results:
- Interleukin-8 (IL-8) was detected in 59% of PCs, increasing with storage time and white cell count.
- IL-8 levels in 5-day-old PCs were significantly higher than in 2-day-old PCs.
- White cell reduction filters prevented IL-8 and IL-1 beta generation by Day 5.
Conclusions:
- Elevated IL-8 levels in some PCs may have physiological implications.
- The role of infused cytokines from PCs in transfusion recipients requires further investigation.
Background:
Cytokines, because of the nature of their immunoinflammatory actions, are potential mediators of the symptom complex of nonhemolytic transfusion reactions. One possible source of cytokines in the transfusion setting is the stored blood component itself.
Study Design And Methods:
To test this possibility, the plasma portion of stored platelet concentrates (PCs) was assayed for the presence of interleukins 1 beta (IL-1 beta), 6 (IL-6), and 8 (IL-8) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha). Samples were taken from PCs obtained from the inventory of a regional blood center (n = 120; 30 each of 2-, 3-, 4-, and 5-day-old units).
Results:
Detectable levels of IL-8 were measured in 59 percent of the PCs sampled, ranging from 30 percent of the 2-day-old units to 83 percent of the 5-day-old units. The median IL-8 concentration ranged from undetectable levels in 2-day-old units up to 1100 pg per mL in 5-day-old units. The mean IL-8 concentration in 5-day-old units, 11,600 pg per mL, was 100 times the mean for 2-day-old units, which was 116 pg per mL (p < 0.0001). The highest levels of IL-8, 50,000 to 200,000 pg per mL, in general were found in units with the longest storage times and highest white cell counts. Sequential sampling of 17 individual PCs over 7 days of storage confirmed that IL-8 increases progressively with increasing storage time. Parallel, but smaller, increases in IL-1 beta were observed in those units with high IL-8 concentrations. TNF-alpha was detected in 3 (10%) of 30 five-day-old PCs, but never exceeded 55 pg per mL in any unit tested. IL-6 at levels of 740 and 508 pg per mL was detected in two 5-day-old units with high white cell counts of 9500 and 14,800 per microL, respectively, but not in 21 additional units tested with white cells < or = 9200 per microL or storage time of < or = 2 days. White cell reduction by third-generation filters on Day 1 of platelet storage prevented the generation of IL-8 and IL-1 beta to Day 5 of storage.
Conclusion:
Although IL-8 achieved levels in some units of PCs that appear capable of causing physiologic changes, the potential adverse effect on transfusion recipients of the infusion of cytokines in PCs remains to be investigated.
More Related Videos
09:46Megakaryocyte Differentiation and Platelet Formation from Human Cord Blood-derived CD34+ Cells
Published on: December 27, 2017
05:49Procoagulant Platelet Characterization by Measuring Phosphatidylserine Exposure and Microvesicle Release from Human Purified Platelets
Published on: November 29, 2024