Measurement of adenosine triphosphate and some other metabolites in blood cells by isotachophoresis. II. Application to monitoring changes during storage in acid-citrate-dextrose preservative.

The applicability and accuracy of isotachophoresis in measuring the concentrations of some of the intermediates of red cell metabolism during blood bank storage in acid-citrate-dextrose preservative was assessed. Preparative treatment consisted of washing with isotonic sucrose solution and centrifugation to remove serum, but white cells and platelets were not separated out from red blood cells. The results for 2,3-diphosphoglycerate, ATP, inorganic phosphate and lactate were also confirmed enzymatically. The technique had good reproducibility (variation less than 3%) and was extremely convenient compared to traditional enzyme assays of the same components. It enabled simultaneous measurement of components with concentrations greater than 1 mumole/red blood cell.