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What exactly is the difference between serum and plasma (as medical terms)?Any practical implications thereof?

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1. Serum is the watery portion of blood after the blood clots. If blood is collected with an anticoagulant, it won't clot and that watery substance is plasma (which has all the clotting factors for transfusion purposes).
2. "Serum" defines 1 of 3 things: *A clear bodily liquid (serous fluid) *A medication *Or blood plasma with the clotting factors removed. The medical implications with the last of the 3 is probably what you're looking for. Once the clotting factors have been removed, the left behind serum can be used for diagnostic purposes or for the creation of immunity serums:, something that will wither add antibodies, remove toxins, or attack viruses.
3. Serum [se'-rum] Supernatant fluid which forms when blood clots. -sera, plural. Antitoxic serum prepared from the blood of an animal which has been immunized by the requisite toxin; it contains a high concentration of antitoxin. Serum sickness, the symptoms arising as a reaction abut ten days after the administratin of serum--urticarial rash, pyrexia and joint pains. Plasma [plaz'-ma] The fluid fraction of blood. Blood plasma is used for infusion in cases of haemoconcentration of the patient's blood as in severe burns. Dried plasma is in the form of a yellow powder which must be reconstituted before being used for infusion. Various plasma substitutes are available, e.g., dextran, plasmosan.
4. Serum = The liquid portion of clotted blood Plasma = The liquid portion of blood which has not clotted
5. Serum is plasma without the protein fibrinogen, which was converted to fibrin when the blood clotted.