Forum - View topicEP. REVIEW: Cells at Work!
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Kokuryu Daimao
Posts: 115 |
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I wouldn't give the depiction of RBCs carrying nutrients half the time too much thought. The show is meant to be entertaining first, educational second. The intro does shows them primarily transporting boxes of O2. Episode location could also be a factor. In episode 1, several RBCs, including the protag RBC, were transporting CO2 boxes the in lung/respiratory regions. They then specifically mentioned in episode 1 that the RBC carrying nutrients had just passed by the small intestine. Since episode 4 took place along the stomach and GI region, then the series depicting RBCs transporting nutrients makes sense. In the end it could just be artistic license because the animators want to draw them transporting nutrients. |
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mangaka-chan
 Posts: 283 |
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I think the "bias" against eosinophil and the "mysterious nature" of basophil depicted in Cells at Work! is heavily based on the under representation of these cell types in biological research. As a comparison, when searching for "macrophage", "neutrophil", "eosinophil", and "basophil" in Pubmed (an online search engine for life science research articles) the number of hits for these are, in order: 299448, 149350, 44899, and 12306.
One big reason for why so little work has been done on eosiniphil and basophil is that they account for such a small percentage of the blood. Trying to get any work done on these cells involve getting a large volume of blood from a donor, which isn't always easy to come by. As a comparison, a colleague of mine needs 500ml of blood to get enough naive T cells to do one experiment, and T cells make up about 7-24% of all immune cells in the blood. 500ml is the maximum volume a person can donate at one time in a one week span (different states/countries have different rules. In places outside the US the limit is even less). Both basophils and eosinophils make up 7% or less of the immune cell population, so it's quite difficult to get enough cells to do statistically meaningful studies on these cells. The other reason is that, compared to other types of immune cells, there are few good established cell lines; that is, cells that can be proliferated indefinitely (when cells are taken out of the body they usually only proliferate and grow for a finite amount of time before finally dying). Cell lines are important for research because they are consistent in how they behave and it provides a common foundation for many different scientists to probe different questions. This also makes results reproducible, which is hugely important in science and the establishment of an idea into fact. I recall one coworker who had a project with basophil and she was never happy with that work because the cell line she was using was very fussy and didn't give good, consistent result. She ended up dropping the project and moved on to something else, and it's because of cases like this that these two cell types have something of a bad rep among scientists; not because they're "bad" in any biological way, but because they're often difficult and at times frustrating to work with and study. |
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crosswithyou
 Posts: 2892 Location: California |
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And who better to deliver those melodramatic lines than Sugita Tomokazu? I laughed the moment he opened his mouth because he is totally someone I would imagine playing a role in this series. Now I'm just waiting for someone like Koyasu Takehito or Hayami Shou to show up as some big bad bacteria. mangaka-chan, thanks for all your insightful comments! |
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Gasero
 Posts: 939 Location: USA |
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I never would have thought that I wanted a show that combines Osmosis Jones with JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, but here we are...
After watching a few episodes, I realize that bodily functions are actually quite violent and energetic, and if we were to anthropomorphize those actions, they'd most likely be as Cells at Work depicts them. |
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EricJ2
 Posts: 4016 |
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Now I'm imagining the White Cells battllng against a slightly outsized Raquel Welch and a submarine... 
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crosswithyou
Posts: 2892 Location: California |
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Yessssssss! Nakamura Yuuichi!!! This series has perfect casting. Love it!
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mangaka-chan
Posts: 283 |
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Ah yes, allergies, the bane of my existence. I do some time wonder if my mast cells aren't just flipping out at anything and everything it encounters, and flooding my body with histamine. It certainly feels like it, when my nose runs and my eyes itch for half the year thanks to the climate conducive to plant reproduction in my state. *sigh*
I think the depiction of steroids (at least when given as a medication) is an interesting choice, and works to convey how impartial a lot of modern drugs are in terms of what they act against. All drugs have some sort of side effect, and that's because most drug acts on some system it was not meant to. Steroids can dampen the immune response, but it also alters metabolism and can make people more susceptible to infection because of the fact that it reduces the body's immune response. The same is true with antibiotics. It kills bacteria and saves lives, but a lot of the commonly prescribed antibiotics act against a wide range of bacteria, both good and bad. And this results in the undesired consequence of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, which is a HUGE problem for public health right now. All of these issues are outside the scope of Cells at Work! but it's nice to see the show made a nod towards the "cold, machine-like attitude" drugs like steroid have compared to the body's own innate system, which is much more dynamic and adaptable. |
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yuna49
 Posts: 3804 |
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I bet they had a good time voicing this show. So many characters have over-the-top reactions that you need to a good screamer like Hanazawa Kana to appear on Cells at Work!. The other show this season with a number of famous seiyuu in guest roles is Late Night Bakabon, which it seems hardly anyone is watching despite being carried on Crunchyroll. |
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crosswithyou
Posts: 2892 Location: California |
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I'm seriously waiting for Koyasu Takehito or Hayami Shou to appear as the "last boss." 
I'm watching Bakabon. It's no Osomatsu san but it can be kinda amusing. |
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11348 |
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But it's not part of their "job." I get the feeling the series is conflating RBCs with plasma because they don't have a cellular model for a liquid transport system full of solutes. But I'd have to think awhile to come up with a way to depict it better that doesn't involve everyone swimming. 
Anyway, I about lost it at that ginormous histamine hose coming down and the looks on everyone's faces. And the pollen reminded me of giant Peeps. I was also expecting antihistamines instead of corticosteroids, but in any case this episode was a delight and one I could fully relate to.
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mangaka-chan
Posts: 283 |
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Honestly, I was also surprised they went with steroids instead of antihistamines like cetirzine or diphenhydramine to treat allergies as well. Do physicians in Japan more readily prescribe oral steroids for seasonal allergies? I was under the impression the allergies would have to be relatively severe (but not to the point of anaphylaxis) for someone to be given oral steroids. It's times like this that I wish I could ask my former colleague who's a pediatric allergist when she would prescribe steroids to a patient (though me having to explain why I'm asking would also be pretty hilarious... )
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Kendra Kirai
Posts: 187 |
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I heard a thing about sudafed being banned or somehow restricted in Japan? I have no idea how real that is, just something I saw mentioned in a discord. |
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consignia
 Posts: 392 |
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Yes, it's a controlled substance. If you go to Japan, you have to make sure you don't have any on you, as they can charge you with handling drugs, or at the very least confiscate it. I remember a friend was ill during a trip to Japan and we spent ages trawling pharmacies trying to find something to help, and he was really shocked they couldn't get him some Sudafed. |
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11348 |
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Sudafed is restricted in the US too, in that you have to get the original formulation from the pharmacy counter instead of out on the shelves. The pseudoephedrine in it can be used to make meth. You can get Sudafed PE with phenylephrine unrestricted.
I'm not aware of diphenhydramine (Benadryl, Nytol) having those restrictions though. And no idea about what Japan thinks of it. I just know I'd rather use diphenhydramine than corticosteroids for allergies.
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darkchibi07
 Posts: 5468 |
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You'd think Eosinophil would make another appearance or at least a cameo since she also deals with allergies but nope! I hope in the last episode, all the unique cells that had their own episode will make an appearance in some major epic battle.
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