Effect of dehydration on the viscoelastic behavior of red cells

Dehydration of red cells alters their rheological behavior and may contribute to the pathology of disorders such as sickle cell disease. We have measured the viscoelastic properties of individual human HbAA red cells after graded dehydration induced by incubation with valinomycin at different external K levels. With dehydration, the cells underwent progressive reduction in their rate of extensional shape recovery (i.e., after elongation by micropipette manipulation). Their rigidity remained unaffected until the mean cell hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) rose above 50 g/dl, but then increased about 100% as judged from the response of membrane tongues drawn into micropipettes. There was also a marked reduction in the shape recovery rate at this level of dehydration, and the cells no longer behaved elastically but rather showed unrecoverable residual deformation. Additionally, the cytoplasm took on solid-like properties. Changes in cell rigidity and shape recovery rate have been previously demonstrated for dense sickle cells; our results indicate that normal red cells can be induced to behave similarly, but that a greater degree of dehydration is required.