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Reticulocytes are immature red blood cells, typically comprising about 1% of the red cells in the human body. Reticulocytes develop and mature in the bone marrow.
They are called reticulocytes because of a reticular (mesh-like) network of RNA that becomes visible under a microscrope with certain stains. They appear slightly bluer than other red cells when looked at with the normal Romanowsky stain. Reticulocytes are also slightly larger, which can be picked up as a high MCV (mean corpuscular volume) with a full blood count done by machine.
To accurately measure reticulocyte counts, automated counters that use lasers mark cell samples with fluorescent dye that marks RNA and DNA. This distinguishes reticulocytes as the middle ground of dye response to laser light, between red blood cells (which have neither RNA nor DNA) and lymphocytes (which have a large amount of DNA, unlike reticulocytes).*
The normal range of values for reticulocytes in the blood depends on the clinical situation and the lab, but broadly speaking is 0.5% to 2.0%. The number of reticulocytes is a good indicator of red bone marrow activity, and can be used by doctors to monitor the progress of treatment for anaemia.
Reticulocytes increase in number and percentage when there is increased production of red blood cells such as in a haemolytic anaemia or sickle cell anaemia. The increase in reticulocytes is called reticulocytosis.
Abnormally low numbers of reticulocytes can be attributed to chemotherapy, aplastic anaemia, pernicious anaemia, bone marrow malignancies, problems of erythropoietin production, or other causes of anaemia due to poor RBC production.
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"Reticulocyte"