Cytology of the Blood and Blood-Forming Organs

Since its inception, morphology has been the cornerstone of hematology, and hematology, which was once a rather drab subject, has expanded into physiopathology, immunology, and chemistry. Despite this, the cell has retained its preeminence due largely to the development of neomorphology. At one time, morphological studies were represented simply by the use of blood and bone marrow smears stained with one of the Romanowsky stains. In recent years, phase microscopy has allowed the observation of unstained material in the cell that is unseen with staining techniques. All manner of cytochemical methods have been developed for studying specific enzymes and other chemical materials in the cell. The motion picture technique, particularly with the use of time lapse has been developed to a high degree for the study of the actual life and death of a cell. Finally, electron microscopy has opened the door to the observation of materials within the cell