Altered erythrocyte spectrin extractability in Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Spectrin extractability was measured in the erythrocyte membranes obtained from patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and normal matched controls. After the extraction of spectrin by adding deionized water, an aliquot of the pellet was applied to 6% SDS-polyacrylamide gels. Spectrin-Band 3 ratio on the gels was used as an indicator of spectrin extractability. Our data disclosed that spectrin extractability is significantly reduced in DMD patients when compared with that of controls and these results suggest that spectrin from DMD patients is more tightly bound to the membranes. Our data may also be applicable to the discussion of the relationship of spectrin to other membrane properties as well as to previously described membrane abnormalities in DMD erythrocytes.