CHARACTERIZATION OF ERYTHROCYTE QUALITY DURING THE REFRIGERATED STORAGE OF WHOLE-BLOOD CONTAINING DI-(2-ETHYLHEXYL) PHTHALATE

  • 1 January 1984
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 64  (6) , 1270-1276
Abstract
Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) accumulates in [human] blood brought into contact with materials utilizing this compound as a plasticizer. To determine whether this phthalate diester affects red blood cells integrity, cell morphology, plasma Hb accumulation, microvesicle production, and the concentration of intracellular metabolites and electrolytes of erythrocytes from blood storedat 4.degree. C with and without DEHP was compared. When sufficient emulsified DEHP was mixed with blood to give a final concentration of 300 .mu.g/ml, plasma Hb accumulation was reduced by an average of 70%, the percentage of cells exhibiting normal morphology was enhanced by at least20-fold, and the volume of microvesicles released from red blood cells was reduced by 50% after 35 days of refrigerated storage comparedto the values obtained from corresponding samples stored without added phthalate. Similar effects were observed regardless of whether blood was stored in nonplasticized polypropylene or tri-(2-ethyl-hexyl) trimellitate plasticized polyvinylchloride containers and with DEHP solubilized by a variety of emulsifiers. When 300 .mu.g/ml DEHP was added to stored blood containing erythrocytes predominantly in the echinocyte conformation, many of the cells reverted to the normal discoid morphology. The addition of this quantity of DEHP to blood had no significant effect on the course of storage-induced changes in erythrocyte ATP, 2,3-diphosphoglycerate (2,3-DPG), Na or K concentrations. DEHP inhibits the deterioration of the red blood cell membrane that results from the refrigerated storage of whole blood.