Publication Date:
2012-11-16
Description:
Abstract 2116 Humans and mice with sickle cell disease (SCD) have RBC stiffness, multiorgan and vascular pathology, and complex pain syndromes. Omega-3 fatty acids, such as docosahexanoic acid (DHA), are essential fatty acids that have anti-inflammatory and anti-thrombotic activities. As dietary supplements, omega-3 fatty acids are beneficial in many cardiovascular diseases. Several studies demonstrate that dietary supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids results in increased incorporation of these fatty acids into the RBC membrane, which can influence RBC deformability. In this study, SCD mice were fed natural ingredient rodent diets supplemented with 3% DHA (DHA diet) or a control matched in total fat with a similar distribution of saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acids (CTRL diet). After 8 weeks of feeding, we examined the RBCs for: 1) deformability, as measured by ektacytometry; 2) stiffness, as measured by atomic force microscopy; 3) osmotic fragility, using a flow cytometric method; and 4) percent irreversibly sickled RBCs on peripheral blood smears. Consistent with other studies, RBCs from SCD mice fed Control diet exhibit low deformability by ektacytometry as compared to RBCs from wild-type mice (0.075 Max EI, SCD mice Control Diet, versus 0.285 Max EI, wild-type mice). Correspondingly, RBC stiffness, as measured by atomic force microscopy, is increased in SCD mice fed Control diet as compared to wild-type mice (1911 Pa, SCD mice Control Diet, versus 831 Pa, wild-type mice). In contrast, RBCs from SCD mice fed DHA diet had improved deformability (0.135 Max EI) compared to RBCs from SCD mice fed Control diet (p
Print ISSN:
0006-4971
Electronic ISSN:
1528-0020
Topics:
Biology
,
Medicine
Permalink