Cytapheresis
Synonyms
Cytaphereses
Separation of one or more kinds of cells from whole blood with the return of other blood cell constituents to the patient or donor. This is accomplished with an instrument that uses centrifugation to separate the cells into different layers based on the differences in cell density (displacement) or drag coefficients in a current (elutriation). The procedure is commonly used in adoptive transfer to isolate NK cells, lymphocytes, or monocytes.