Glossary | 合法醫療器材資訊網

Agglutinationisaprocessinwhichfreeredbloodcellsareboundtogetherbyanantibodyandreducedtoavisiblepellet.

The process in which free red blood cells are bound together by an antibody and reduced to a visible pellet when centrifuged, most typically in test tubes. In short, when an antibody binds to an RBC antigen then binds to an antigen on a second RBC, the antibody links form “bridges” that lead to a visible aggregate of RBCs. Agglutination is the central reaction in blood banking, as most of our testing for decades has relied on its detection. The agglutinates are typically characterized on a 0-4+ scale, with 0 representing no reaction, and 4+ indicating a very strong reaction (see images above). Antibodies vary in their ability to cause agglutination, as IgM[1] antibodies agglutinate RBCs carrying target antigens quite efficiently, while IgG[2] antibodies typically bind to incompatible RBCs but do not directly agglutinate them. The characteristics of the agglutination reaction are used, usually relia...