Effects of temperature on oxygen transfer conductance of human red blood cells

The influence of temperature (varied from 37 to 7 degrees C; average pH = 7.4) on the kinetics of O2 uptake and release by human red blood cells under stopped-flow conditions was investigated by double-beam spectrophotometry. The kinetics were characterized by the specific transfer conductance for O2, G. The temperature coefficient of G, Q10(G), for O2 uptake averaged 1.17, and activation energy, Ea(G) = 2.9 kcal/mol O2. The average values for O2 release were: Q10(G) = 1.30, and Ea(G) = 4.8 kcal/mol O2. The G values for release of O2 from oxyhaemoglobin solution, Gsol, yielded Q10(Gsol) = 2.06, Ea(Gsol) = 13.4 kcal/mol O2. Comparison of these Q10 and Ea values with those for diffusion of O2 and haemoglobin in aqueous media leads to the conclusion that the kinetics of O2 uptake and release by red blood cells in the stopped-flow condition is mainly limited by diffusion of O2 and haemoglobin in the red cell interior and by diffusion of O2 in the medium, and to a lesser degree by chemical reaction kinetics.