EFFECT OF BUMETANIDE ON CATION-TRANSPORT IN HUMAN RED BLOOD-CELLS

  • 1 January 1977
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 203  (1) , 92-96
Abstract
Bumetanide, a sulfamyl-aminobenzoic acid derivative, is a new and highly effective diuretic agent. Its effects on cation transport in human red cells was examined. At a concentration of 10-3 M, the drug inhibited both active and passive unidirectional Na fluxes, as well as active K influx. It also caused a significant inhibition of glycolysis. The inhibition caused by bumetanide was less than that seen with ouabain alone, but a bumetanide effect was also present in ouabain-treated cells. Bumetanide had no effect on red cell Na-K ATPase activity and did not affect net transport of Na in Na-loaded cells. The data are consistent with a model in which the inhibition of monovalent cation movement in red cells by bumetanide is related to an effect of this compound in decreasing the permeability of the red cell membrane to Na.