Scientists capture white blood cell death

Scientists have captured the moment a white blood cell dies - and the results are spectacular.

In a world first, scientists at Melbourne's La Trobe University have used time lapse microscopy to show the explosion where beaded structures, like a beaded necklace, shoot from a dying cell.

Cell biologist Georgia Atkin-Smith said the team had shown that cells go through regulated stages of death, unlike previous research which suggested it was a random occurrence.

Scientists still don't know why the cell shoots out these long beads of essential molecules, but it could hold the key to improved medical treatments for inflammatory diseases.

"When bacteria and viruses invade our bodies we think they may be able to take control of this process and hide in the beaded necklaces and move throughout the body," Ms Atkin-Smith told AAP on Monday.