Normal Curve of Leucocyte Count of the Albino Rat Over a 24-Hour Period

Abstract

Those who have reported on the rhythm of leucocyte count in man are not in complete agreement. The following work pertains to the blood of man: Reinke, 1 Galambos, 2 Mauriac and Cabouat, 3 Stetson, 4 and Medlar, 5 agree that there are variations within the day of the leucocyte count which can be considered normal. Japha, 6 Turk, 7 Fletcher and Mitchel, 8 Shaw, 9 Smith and McDowell, 10 and Martin 11 find that the count is normally higher in the afternoon than in the morning. Doan and Zerfas 12 and Sabin, Cunningham, Doan and Kindwall 13 report short period rhythm as well as the longer cycle. The latter report an hourly rhythm for the total count and a morning to afternoon tide with a peak in the afternoon. They find that this tide is due to an increase in the neutrophiles which have also the hourly rhythm. The lymphocytes, they report, have a 15-minute cycle and are relatively constant as to tide. These workers conclude that the possible normal variation for a given individual is covered within the day. Shaw 9 reports 2 tides a day. Each tide is of 12 hours' duration. The forenoon tide reaches a peak in the afternoon and ebbs in the evening. The night tide, starting in the evening, reaches a peak after midnight and fades in the morning. Medlar 5 finds no consistent hourly rhythm but does concede that each individual may have a rhythm of his own. He states that the total normal variation of any individual is covered within an hour.

Goldberg and Lipskaia 14 state that mental and physical labor bring about an increase in the neutrophiles at the expense of the lymphocytes. Shaw 9 and Sabin 13 and her coworkers both find the neutrophiles responsible for the tides.