Blood preservation 42: improvement of ascorbate's ability to maintain 2,3-DPG with inosine

Inosine and ascorbate have been shown to maintain normal 2,3-DPG levels during three to four weeks of blood storage. With the introduction of CPD-adenine, which allows five weeks of storage, the desire for 2,3-DPG maintenance may receive new emphasis. Red blood cell 2,3-DPG remained at normal or higher levels for six weeks whenever 10 or 15 mM inosine and 10 mM vitamin C (L-ascorbate) or D-ascorbate were present in the CPD-adenine preservative. Provision by inosine of a five-carbon sugar for 2,3-DPG synthesis, bypassing the rate-limiting phosphofructokinase reaction, may allow NADH oxidation by ascorbate to provide an increased supply of substrate for the Rappoport-Luebering shunt, thus affecting the net increase and maintenance of 2,3-DPG.