Editing Blood plasma (section)

{{Short description|Liquid component of blood}}
{{Other uses|Plasma (disambiguation){{!}}Plasma}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2017}}
[[File:FreshFrozenPlasma.JPG|thumb|A unit of donated [[fresh plasma]]]]

'''Blood plasma''' is a light [[Amber (color)|amber]]-colored liquid component of [[blood]] in which [[blood cell]]s are absent, but which contains [[Blood protein|proteins]] and other constituents of [[whole blood]] in [[Suspension (chemistry)|suspension]]. It makes up about 55% of the body's total blood volume.<ref>{{cite web | url =https://anthro.palomar.edu/blood/blood_components.htm | title =Blood Components | author =Dennis O'Neil | publisher =[[Palomar College]] | year =1999 | url-status =dead | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20130605052544/https://anthro.palomar.edu/blood/blood_components.htm | archive-date =June 5, 2013 }}</ref> It is the [[Intravascular compartment|intravascular part]] of [[extracellular fluid]] (all body fluid outside cells). It is mostly water (up to 95% by volume), and contains important dissolved proteins (6–8%; e.g., [[serum albumin]]s, [[globulin]]s, and [[fibrinogen]]),<ref>{{cite web | url =https://compepid.tuskegee.edu/syllabi/biomedical/Anatomy/microanat309/chapter9.htm | title =Chapter 9 Blood | author =Tuskegee University | author-link =Tuskegee University | publisher =tuskegee.edu | date =May 29, 2013 | url-status =dead | archive-url =https://archive.today/20131228034243/https://compepid.tuskegee.edu/syllabi/biomedical/Anatomy/microanat309/chapter9.htm | archive-date =December 28, 2013 }}</ref> [[glucose]], [[clotting factors]], [[electrolyte]]s ({{chem|Na|+}}, {{chem|Ca|2+}}, {{chem|Mg|2+}}, {{chem2|HCO_{3}^{−} }}, {{chem|Cl|−}}, etc.), [[hormone]]s, [[carbon dioxide]] (plasma being the main medium for excretory product transportation), and [[oxygen]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Mathew |first1=Joscilin |last2=Sankar |first2=Parvathy |last3=varacallo |first3=Matthew |title=Physiology, blood plasma |url=https://europepmc.org/article/nbk/nbk531504 |website=Europe PMC |date=2024 |pmid=30285399 |access-date= January 23, 2024}}</ref> It plays a vital role in an intravascular [[osmotic]] effect that keeps electrolyte concentration balanced and protects the body from [[infection]] and other blood-related disorders.<ref name=Bloodplasma>{{cite web |url=https://bloodbanker.com/plasma/plasma-donation/ways-to-keep-your-blood-plasma-healthy/ |title=Ways to Keep Your Blood Plasma Healthy | work = BloodBanker |access-date=November 10, 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131101022142/https://bloodbanker.com/plasma/plasma-donation/ways-to-keep-your-blood-plasma-healthy/ |archive-date=November 1, 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Blood plasma can be separated from whole blood through [[blood fractionation]], by adding an [[anticoagulant]] to a tube filled with blood, which is spun in a [[centrifuge]] until the blood cells fall to the bottom of the tube. The blood plasma is then poured or drawn off.<ref name="Maton">{{cite book | vauthors = Maton A, Hopkins J, McLaughlin CW, Johnson S, Warner MQ, LaHart D, Wright JD | title = Human Biology and Health | publisher = Prentice Hall | year = 1993 | location = Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey | url = https://archive.org/details/humanbiologyheal00scho | isbn = 0-13-981176-1 | url-access = registration }}</ref> For [[point-of-care testing]] applications, plasma can be extracted from whole blood via filtration<ref>
{{Cite journal|vauthors= Tripathi S, Kumar V, Prabhakar A, Joshi S, Agrawal A |date=2015|title=Passive blood plasma separation at the microscale: a review of design principles and microdevices |journal=J. Micromech. Microeng. |volume=25|issue=8|pages=083001 |doi=10.1088/0960-1317/25/8/083001 |bibcode=2015JMiMi..25h3001T|s2cid=138153068 }}</ref> or via [[Agglutination (biology)|agglutination]]<ref name="GuoHansson2020">{{cite journal | vauthors = Guo W, Hansson J, van der Wijngaart W | title = Synthetic Paper Separates Plasma from Whole Blood with Low Protein Loss | journal = Analytical Chemistry | volume = 92 | issue = 9 | pages = 6194–6199 | date = May 2020 | pmid = 32323979 | doi = 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c01474 | doi-access = free }}</ref> to allow for rapid testing of specific biomarkers. Blood plasma has a density of approximately {{cvt|1025|kg/m3|g/ml}}.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://hypertextbook.com/facts/2004/MichaelShmukler.shtml | title=Density of blood | vauthors = Shmukler M | year=2004 | website=The Physics Factbook | veditors = Elert G | access-date=2022-01-23 | archive-date=December 9, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211209152325/https://hypertextbook.com/facts/2004/MichaelShmukler.shtml | url-status=live }}</ref> [[Serum (blood)|Blood serum]] is blood plasma without clotting factors.<ref name="Maton" /> [[Plasmapheresis]] is a medical therapy that involves blood plasma extraction, treatment, and reintegration.

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[[Fresh frozen plasma]] is on the [[WHO Model List of Essential Medicines]], the most important medications needed in a basic [[health system]].<ref name=WHO2015E>{{cite web |url=https://www.who.int/medicines/publications/essentialmedicines/EML2015_8-May-15.pdf |title=19th WHO Model List of Essential Medicines (April 2015) |date=April 2015 |access-date=May 10, 2015 |publisher=WHO |archive-date=April 28, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190428215425/https://www.who.int/medicines/publications/essentialmedicines/EML2015_8-May-15.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> It is of critical importance in the treatment of many types of trauma which result in blood loss, and is therefore kept stocked universally in all medical facilities capable of treating trauma (e.g., [[trauma center]]s, hospitals, and ambulances) or that pose a risk of patient blood loss such as surgical suite facilities. <ref>{{cite journal | url=https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamasurgery/article-abstract/401959 | title=Usage of Blood Products in Multiple Casualty Incidents: The Experience of a Level I Trauma Center in Israel | vauthors = Soffer D | year=2008 | journal=Archives of Surgery | volume=143 | issue=10 | pages=983–989 | doi=10.1001/archsurg.143.10.983 | pmid=18936378 | access-date=2024-01-23 | url-access=subscription }}</ref>