RED CELL METABOLISM IN THE PREMATURE INFANT

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
The erythrocytes of premature infants, term infants, and adults were studied with respect to ATP levels, ATP stability, glucose consumption, glutathione stability, and the tendency to develop morphologic abnormalities during short periods of incubation. The erythrocytes of both the premature and term infants had higher ATP levels and glucose consumption, greater ATP and glutathione instability, and more marked morphologic abnormalities than the adult red cells. The erythrocytes of the premature infants showed the greatest degrees of abnormality. It is suggested that the premature infant at birth possesses a metabolic profile in his erythrocytes which results in ATP instability.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: