Largest and smallest cells

[Ian Mc]

Pete

Digging back into  my memory of the heamopoeitic pathway dont you get
about 2-3 RBCs from each reticulocyte
> 
> @->-Do erythrocytes and platelets count as cells? As they are only really
> @->-parts of bigger cells and are anucleate.
> 
> Erythrocytes aren't really part of other cells are they?  Don't they toss
> their nucleus at some point in hematopoeisis?  
> 
> Platelets OTOH are indeed fragments of megakaryocytes, but they have mRNA,
> organelles, and protein translation may occur in them.  Does a cell have
> to have a nucleus and/or divide to be a "cell"?  Inquiring minds want to
> know!
> 
> "Platelet Boy" Pete

However so do some viruses are they cells? And you can get mRNA,
organelles and protein translation in rabbit reticulocyte lysates.

Megakaryocytes are big cells up to 40um in diameter, I've purified some before.

But that still leaves the field open for small cells ???

Ian Mc