Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 30, 2026

Measuring Deformability and Red Cell Heterogeneity in Blood by Ektacytometry
Published on: January 12, 2018
Single-cell electrical lysis of erythrocytes detects deficiencies in the cytoskeletal protein network
Ning Bao1, Gayani C Kodippili, Katie M Giger
1Department of Chemical Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, USA.
Abstract:
The network of erythrocyte cytoskeletal proteins significantly influences erythrocyte physical and biological properties. Here we show that the kinetics of erythrocyte lysis during exposure to an electric field is sensitively correlated with defects in the cytoskeletal network. Histograms compiled from single-cell electrical lysis data show characteristics of erythrocyte populations that are deficient in a specific cytoskeletal protein, revealing the presence of cell subpopulations.

