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Nuclear–cytoplasmic ratio
Measurement used in cell biology
Measurement used in cell biology
The nuclear–cytoplasmic ratio (also variously known as the nucleus:cytoplasm ratio, nucleus–cytoplasm ratio, N:C ratio, or N/C) is a measurement used in cell biology. It is a ratio of the size (i.e., volume) of the nucleus of a cell to the size of the cytoplasm of that cell.
The N:C ratio indicates the maturity of a cell, because as a cell matures the size of its nucleus generally decreases. For example, "blast" forms of erythrocytes, leukocytes, and megakaryocytes start with an N:C ratio of 4:1, which decreases as they mature to 2:1 or even 1:1 (with exceptions for mature thrombocytes and erythrocytes, which are anuclear cells, and mature lymphocytes, which only decrease to a 3:1 ratio and often retain the original 4:1 ratio).
An increased N:C ratio is commonly associated with precancerous dysplasia as well as with malignant cells.
References
References
- Turgeon, Mary Louise. (2005). "Clinical hematology: theory and procedures". Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
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