Method and system for fractionating a quantity of blood into the components thereof

A method for fractionating a given amount of whole blood into components thereof and for collecting at least one cellular component, comprising the steps of supplying the whole blood to a first separation chamber mounted in a centrifuge device, centrifuging the whole blood in the first separation chamber to cause fractionation of the whole blood into components thereof and to cause the components to congregate at different zones in the first separation chamber during centrifugation, withdrawing a first cellular component of the blood from the separation chamber and recirculating that first component back through the first separation chamber with the whole blood until only the first component is being recirculated, withdrawing blood fluid containing plasma, and passing that blood fluid back into the first separation chamber in a direction which traverses the flow path of whole blood into, and withdrawal of the first component from the first separation chamber a predetermined number of times thereby to elute blood components other than the first cellular component from the whole blood and first component with the blood fluid and to wash the first component with the blood fluid.

A system for automatically fractionating a given quantity of whole blood into components thereof and for collecting at least one component comprising:

• a centrifuge device, a first separation chamber mounted in said centrifuge device and having first and second inlets and first and second outlets, means for withdrawing whole blood from a source thereof and for supplying same to said first inlet of said first separation chamber, first conduit means for coupling said first outlet of said first separation chamber to the source of recirculation, fluid coupling means for coupling said second outlet of said first separation chamber to said second inlet of said first separation chamber and means for causing blood fluid to flow from said second outlet to said second inlet and through said first separation chamber, and said inlets and outlets of said first separation chamber being arranged so that blood fluid flowing in said first separation chamber from said second inlet to said second outlet traverses the flow path of whole blood entering said first inlet and the blood component exiting from said first outlet such that the flowing blood fluid elutes blood components from the whole blood while at the same time the flowing blood fluid washes the one component.

The system according to claim 48 wherein a light transmitting portion of said fluid coupling means is situated outside said centrifuge device and said means for monitoring and sensing the composition of the blood fluid withdrawn from said first separation chamber includes a light source and a photodetector associated with said light transmitting portion of said fluid coupling means.

For use in a blood fractionating system wherein whole blood is passed into and through a separation chamber in a centrifuge device for fractionating the whole blood into components thereof, an improved separation chamber having four corners and adapted to be positioned in a diamond position so that the four corners define an upper corner, a lower corner, a first side corner and a second side corner, said upper corner having an outlet for blood fluid containing components being fractionated in said separation chamber, said lower corner having a re-entry inlet for blood fluid withdrawn from said upper corner, said first side corner having an inlet for the whole blood and said second side corner having an outlet for a blood component.