If an anticoagulant is added to a blood sample, what is the liquid portion called?

When an anticoagulant is added to a blood sample, it prevents the blood from clotting. The liquid portion that remains after the cells have been removed is known as plasma. Plasma is the fluid part of blood and contains water, electrolytes, proteins, hormones, nutrients, and waste products. It plays a vital role in transporting these substances throughout the body.

In contrast, serum is the liquid that remains after blood has clotted and the clot has been removed. Therefore, if an anticoagulant is present, clotting will not occur, and the resultant liquid is plasma, not serum. This distinction is crucial in clinical settings, as the choice between using plasma or serum can affect the results of laboratory tests.

Antiserum refers to blood serum that contains specific antibodies against particular antigens, and blood complement refers to a group of proteins in the blood that assist in the immune response, neither of which applies in this context.