Overview of the Clinical Tests

Overview of the Clinical Laboratory Tests
for Blood, Serum, Plasma and Blood Cells

Once the blood has been collected, the appropriate tubes must be processed according to the tests ordered for the patient. It is critical that the right tubes are selected for the blood samples needed in the test. Anticoagulated blood is needed for some studies like the hematocrit packed RBC test and any test that calls for isolated white blood cells. Plasma comes from those tubes, too, and is the required sample for some tests (an example would be any test evaluating clotting proteins, which will be consumed in the clotting reaction that makes serum the wrong specimen).
Take a look at the chart to see all the different types of clinical tests that can be performed on a patient's sample. This chart is not necessarily all-inclusive. Can you think of missing test categories?

BLOOD CELL COUNTS AND BLOOD TYPING; BLOOD CELL MICROSCOPY

For an animation depicting the Flow Cytometric Analysis of isolated and antibody-stained blood cells, click here.

ANTIBODY ASSAYS

COMPLEMENT FUNCTION TESTS
Complement is a soluble multi-protein nonspecific defence system that is quick and effective. It acts through either of classical or alternative pathways to cause cell lysis of targeted cells. There are nine main complement components along with cleavage products, aggregates and accessory molecules. Individual complement components can be evaluated using assay methods that rely on recognition of the complement component as an antigen (antibody reagents). However, only complement FUNCTIONAL assays give information about the ability of detected molecules to work in concert with other complement components to produce an effective cell lysis phenomenon. A functional assay compares the complement in a patient's sample with control standard activity in the same assay.
CELLULAR FUNCTION ASSAYS
Of all the indicators of a patient's immune status, functional assays for living cells is very effective in providing data about the health of specific blood cells. T-lymphocytes, B-lymphocytes, macrophages and other white blood cells can each be tested with assays that challenge them to respond and then measure cell growth or the production of biologically relevant molecules.
PROTEIN EVALUATION AND BLOOD CHEMISTRY

Biomedical Laboratory Information

Last modified 11-26-03.

Overview of the Clinical Laboratory Tests for Blood, Serum, Plasma and Blood Cells

Overview of the Clinical Laboratory Tests
for Blood, Serum, Plasma and Blood Cells