a-short-review-of-histology

Basophils:

Basophils are granular leucocytes
They are 12-15 flm in diameter and have a lobed nucleus
They represent <0.5% of white blood cells in normal peripheral blood and are therefore difficult to find on a blood smear
The cytoplasmic granules stain an intense blue-magenta colour (with a Romanovskytype stain) which often results in the nucleus being obscured in whole cell blood smear preparations
They spend only a few hours in circulating peripheral blood before passing into tissue spaces
The time spent in tissue spaces is believed to be variable
The contents of the granules includes heparin and histamine and these cells are associated with inflammatory reactions eg allergic reactions

Basophils - 2:

In this image of a blood smear a basophil is labelled B (A = neutrophil, C = small lymphocyte)
Notice that the diameter of the basophil is about 50% greater than the surrounding red blood cells but similar to that of the neutrophil
The cytoplasmic granules of basophils stain intensely blue - magenta and often, as in this example, obscure the lobulated nucleus in whole cell blood smears