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THE INCREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO HEMOLYSIS BY INDOL IN DOGS FED DEFICIENT DIETS
C P Rhoads1, W H Barker, D K Miller
1Hospital of The Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research.
Insights
Indole causes red blood cell destruction (hemolysis) more severely in deficient diets. Supplementing with liver extract, a treatment for pernicious anemia, stops this indole-induced hemolysis.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Hematology
- Nutritional Science
Background:
- Indole is a compound that can induce red blood cell destruction (hemolysis).
- Dietary deficiencies can exacerbate the hemolytic effects of certain compounds.
- Pernicious anemia is a condition characterized by a deficiency in vitamin B12, leading to anemia.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the hemolytic effects of indole under conditions of dietary deficiency.
- To determine if liver extract, a known treatment for pernicious anemia, can counteract indole-induced hemolysis.
- To understand the mechanisms underlying indole-induced anemia and hemolysis.
Main Methods:
- Administering indole to subjects on a normal diet versus a deficient diet.
- Supplementing the deficient diet with liver extract and observing its effect on hemolysis.
- Analyzing the types of hemoglobin-containing cells affected by indole, including reticulocytes.
Main Results:
- Indole exhibited significantly greater hemolytic activity in the presence of a dietary deficiency complex compared to a normal diet.
- Supplementation of the deficient diet with liver extract effectively abolished the hemolytic effect of indole.
- The observed hemolysis impacted all hemoglobin-containing cells, including immature red blood cells (reticulocytes).
- The recovery from anemia induced by indole in deficient subjects indicated a cessation of the hemolytic process.
Conclusions:
- Dietary deficiencies potentiate the hemolytic effects of indole.
- Liver extract possesses properties that can mitigate indole-induced hemolysis, suggesting a link to pernicious anemia treatment.
- Indole-induced anemia may be partly due to an impaired rate of red blood cell production in addition to hemolysis.
Abstract:
1. Indol is more hemolytic in the presence of a deficiency complex than when a normal diet is fed. 2. The hemolytic effect can be abolished by supplementing the deficient diet with liver extract curative of pernicious anemia in man. 3. The hemolysis affects all hemoglobin-containing cells, including reticulocytes. 4. The repair of the anemia resulting from the administration of indol in the presence of a deficiency represents the cessation of a hemolytic process. 5. An abnormally low rate of production of erythrocytes may well be a factor in the production of the anemia.
