ACANTHOCYTES/SPUR CELLS CODOCYTES/ TARGET CELLS

Appearance:

Spiked membranes
Varying size and
surface
distribution.
Appearance/ characteristics:
Uneven
projections
Has a dark center (a central
Smallwr than
hemoglobinzed area) surrounded
normal RBC
by a white ring followed by a
darker outer ringcontaining a
band of hemoglobin.
CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE In electron microscope, they
appear thin and in a bell shape.
It lies in their vulnerability to splenic Has a disproportional increase in
trapping and destruction due to their the surface area membrane to
morphology, which ultimately leads to volume ratio - gives the cells
hemolytic anemia. decreased osmotic fragility

COMMON CAUSE CONDITIONS

Severe liver dysfunction LCAT may be decreased in liver

Abetalipoproteinnemia disease. Decreased enzymatic
disease

Aneroxia nervosa activity increases the cholesterol

Liver

to phospholipid ratio, producing

an absolute increase in surface
HOW DOES IT HAPPEN? area of the red blood cell
membranes.

deficiency
Alterations Alterations Decrease in hemoglobin
in in content relative to surface

iron
membrane membrane area is probably the reason
for the appearance of target
proteins lipids cells.
splenectomy 

If splenic macrophage
function is abnormal or absent
because of splenectomy,
Post-

altered erythrocytes will not be

removed from the circulation
Diseases such as efficiently. Therefore, increased
abetalipoproteinemia, severe liver numbers of target cells may be
dysfunction and aneroxia nervosa observed.
affects the cholesterol and protein
content of RBC, altering the fluidity of
the cells and causing the cell to
undergo morphological changes leading
to the formation of spur cells.