Workshop8

In Gwedolen’s case mycoplasma pneumonia

is not the only disease to be treated,

there are something more called

hemolytic anemia,

more specifically,

it is cold agglutinin disease.

From now on,

we are going to talk about

what is hemolytic anemia, and

what is the cause in this case and

which treatment can be done on this disease

but, Let’s See a video before we start

In this case, what we are looking at is

Definitely, autoimmune hemolytic anemia

Here, Autoimmune means

the system of immune responses of organism

Against its own helthy cells and tissues

Hemolysis means ruptureing of red blood cells

And the relase of their contents

Anemia means decrease in total red blood cells

Or decrease in hemoglobin

In the blood

In other words

Auto immune hemolytic anemia is anemia

Caused by malfunction of immune system

Whose autoantibody attecks

Their own red blood cells

In autoimmune hemolytic anemia,

Either by lysis or phagocytosis

Destruction rate of red blood cell

Exceed the rate of RBC production

So it ends up Anemia

Then what is the cause of Autoimmune hemolytic anemia?

Little is found about the cause of hemolytic anemia so far.

But let’s see gwedolen’s case and

find what is related with mycoplasma pneumonia

As Natalia mentioned before

Mycoplasma can change

The composition of its cell membrane

To mimic the host cell membrane

And avoid detection by immune system cells

In this case

Mycoplasma may mimic I antigen on the red blood cells

Let’s go further

The I antigen

is found in the cell membrane

of red blood cells

When we are young,

I mean before 18 months,

We all have small I antigens

On our Red blood cell

However

Small I antigen undergoes

Gradual conversion

To capital I antigen

Untill 18months (end)

The formation of the capital I antigen

From small I antigen

Is catalyzed by a protein

Called I branching enzyme

If there is a mutation of the gen

Adults can still have I antigen( end)

Usually they have antibody for capital I antigen

But otherwise

Normal adults have

B cell tolerance

On capital I antigen

However

When mycoplasma mimic capital I antigen on red blood cell

B bell cam makes antibody

Upon those antigen