In vitro kinetics of reticulocyte subtypes: maturation after red blood cell storage in additive solution-1 (AS-1)

In vitro reticulocyte disappearance was significantly faster after prolonged storage of red blood cell units at 4 °C. The in vitro half-life at 0.5 weeks of storage was not significantly different from the values reported for fresh venous blood, but after the sixth week of storage, the half-lives were shorter. The possible explanation is that blood bank storage does not cause irreversible damage to the human reticulocyte maturational machinery.