Influence of Hypercholesterolemia on Deformability of Erythrocytes in Hyperglycemic Subjects

Erythrocyte deformability can be defined as its ability to deform and squeeze through capillaries. It undergoes various shape transformations and adapt to flow in varying flow conditions / shear stress. Every red blood cell has a cytoskeleton, a sort of scaffolding made of protein molecules called spectrin, attached to the inside of its cell membrane in a brush-like network. When the bonds within that protein network or between the network and the cell membrane are broken, holes open up in the cytoskeleton, allowing the cell to become more fluidic and squeeze through narrow passages. The researchers show that such a transformation can be achieved by breaking either of two types of cytoskeletal bonds-bonds between two molecules of spectrin or bonds between spectrin and another protein called actin, which is embedded in the cell membrane. An input of either mechanical energy (such as squeezing or shearing) or chemical energy (such as ATP, an energy carrier used by cells), is enough to break those bonds and cause the necessary cytoskeleton deformation,