Nucleated red blood cell Nucleated red blood cell All vertebrate organisms have hemoglobin-containing cells in their blood and with the exception of mammals, all of these red blood cells contain a nucleus. Mammals represent ~5,500 named species out of ~66,000 vertebrate species, and within this ~8% subgroup, red blood cells are known as erythrocytes or RBCs and lack a cell nucleus in mature organisms. In contrast, a nucleated red blood cell (NRBC), also known by several other names, is a mammalian RBC that contains a cell nucleus. NRBCs occur in normal development as progenitor cells in the erythropoietic lineage and in pathological states. Normally,
Red blood cell 3255 BCE. These cells were discovered in May 2012. Red blood cell Red blood cells, also known as RBCs, red cells, red blood corpuscles, haematids, erythroid cells or erythrocytes (from Greek "erythros" for "red" and "kytos" for "hollow vessel", with "-cyte" translated as "cell" in modern usage), are the most common type of blood cell and the vertebrate's principal means of delivering oxygen (O) to the body tissues—via blood flow through the circulatory system. RBCs take up oxygen in the lungs, or gills of fish, and release it into tissues while squeezing through the body's capillaries. The cytoplasm of erythrocytes