A method of collecting mononuclear cells, comprising separating whole blood into cellular components and platelets suspended in plasma, separating the platelets suspended in plasma into platelet concentrate and platelet-poor plasma, combining the cellular components with the platelet-poor plasma to form a first mixture, and separating the first mixture into mononuclear cells and at least one component.

Systems and methods for performing online extracorporeal photopheresis of mononuclear cells are disclosed. During a mononuclear cell collection cycle, blood is removed from a source and separated into a plasma constituent, a mononuclear cell-containing layer, and red blood cells, followed by the collection of a pre-product including at least a portion of the mononuclear cell-containing layer and at least a portion of the separated red blood cells. The mononuclear cell collection cycle may be repeated, followed by the production of a single mononuclear cell product using the collected pre-product(s). The mononuclear cell product is irradiated using a fixed dose of light, such that the mononuclear cell product is produced so as to have a predetermined volume and a predetermined hematocrit, regardless of the number of pre-products used to produce the mononuclear cell product. Following irradiation, at least a portion of the irradiated mononuclear cell product is returned to the source.

A method of collecting mononuclear cells, comprising separating whole blood into cellular components and platelets suspended in plasma, separating the platelets suspended in plasma into platelet concentrate and platelet-poor plasma, combining the cellular components with the platelet-poor plasma to form a first mixture, and separating the first mixture into mononuclear cells and at least one component.

A method for treating mononuclear cells for an extracorporeal photopheresis procedure, driven and adjusted by a microprocessor-based controller, comprising the steps of priming a fluid circuit with priming fluid, directing whole blood derived from a blood source into the fluid circuit, separating the whole blood into a red blood cell component, a mononuclear cell component, and a plasma component, returning a first portion of the red blood cell component and a first portion of the plasma component to the whole blood, adding a photoactivation agent to the mononuclear cell component to create an agent-added mononuclear cell component, irradiating the agent-added mononuclear cell component to create a photoactivated mononuclear cell component, and incubating for a period of time a first portion of the photoactivated mononuclear cell component to create an incubated photoactivated mononuclear cell component.

Described is a method for controlling fluid volume balance. A controller is configured with a first set of inputs comprising a hematocrit, a total blood volume, and an ACD ratio. A maximum extracorporeal RBC amount during the procedure is estimated based on the first set of inputs. A fluid circuit is primed with a priming fluid. Whole blood is drawn from a blood source and separated into a RBC component, a target cell component, and a plasma component. The target cell component is directed to a product container. The product container comprising the target cell component is treated. A treated target cell component, a portion of the RBC component remaining in the fluid circuit, and/or a portion of the plasma component remaining in the fluid circuit are returned to the blood source. A first response action is provided if the maximum extracorporeal RBC amount estimated is above a programmed limit.

A method provided for determining a range for the amount of light-energy attenuating material that may be present in a suspension containing target cells (such as MNCs), light-energy attenuating matter (such as RBCs and plasma), and a light-energy activatable compound (such as psoralen) so that a desired therapeutic effect (such as the percentage of MNCs in which apoptosis occurs) is obtained when the suspension is subjected to a known amount of light energy. In a related aspect, a method is provided for preparing a suspension containing target cells, light-energy attenuating matter, and a light-energy activatable compound so that a desired therapeutic effect is obtained when the suspension is subjected to a known amount of light energy.

A method of collecting mononuclear cells, comprising separating whole blood into cellular components and platelets suspended in plasma, separating the platelets suspended in plasma into platelet concentrate and platelet-poor plasma, combining the cellular components with the platelet-poor plasma to form a first mixture, and separating the first mixture into mononuclear cells and at least one component.

A method of collecting mononuclear cells, comprising separating whole blood into plasma and cellular components, combining the cellular components with plasma replacement fluid to form a first mixture, and separating the first mixture into mononuclear cells and at least one component.

Circulating cell clusters found in subjects with cancer, autoimmune conditions, infections, or other diseases, can be trapped or disrupted by filtering them with an intra- or extracorporeal device and, in some cases, exposing them to a substance, such as enzyme, that reduces intercellular adhesion.

A device for processing a biological material is disclosed. The device includes a syringe barrel comprising beads, a filter positioned at a close end of the barrel, a plunger insertable into the barrel through an open end, and a needle. The plunger includes a paddle assembly that is configured to mix a biological material with the beads after the biological material has been harvested from a patient.