Skip Navigation
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

Use this QR code to view the newest version of this document
Use this QR code to view the newest version of this document

Your Environment. Your Health.

Publication Detail

Title: The heritability of hemolysis in stored human red blood cells.

Authors: Van 't Erve, Thomas J; Wagner, Brett A; Martin, Sean M; Knudson, C Michael; Blendowski, Robyn; Keaton, Mignon; Holt, Tracy; Hess, John R; Buettner, Garry R; Ryckman, Kelli K; Darbro, Benjamin W; Murray, Jeffrey C; Raife, Thomas J

Published In Transfusion, (2015 Jun)

Abstract: The transfusion of red blood cells (RBCs) with maximum therapeutic efficacy is a major goal in transfusion medicine. One of the criteria used in determining stored RBC quality is end-of-storage hemolysis. Between donors, a wide range of hemolysis is observed under identical storage conditions. Here, a potential mechanism for this wide range is investigated. We hypothesize that the magnitude of hemolysis is a heritable trait. Also, we investigated correlations between hemolysis and RBC metabolites; this will establish pathways influencing hemolysis as future targets for genetic analysis.Units of RBCs from identical and nonidentical twins were collected and stored under standard conditions for 56 days. Hemolysis, adenosine triphosphate (ATP), and total glutathione (tGSH) were measured throughout storage. Nontargeted metabolic analyses were performed on RBCs that had been stored for 28 days. Heritability was determined by comparing values between identical and nonidentical twins.Hemolysis was found to be heritable (mean > 45%) throughout the storage period. Potential correlations were observed between hemolysis and metabolites from the purine metabolism, lysolipid, and glycolysis pathways. These also exhibited heritability (>20%). No correlation was found with ATP or tGSH.The susceptibility of RBCs to lysis during storage is partly determined by inheritance. We have also uncovered several pathways that are candidate targets for future genomewide association studies. These findings will aid in the design of better storage solutions and the development of donor screening tools that minimize hemolysis during storage.

PubMed ID: 25644965 Exiting the NIEHS site

MeSH Terms: Adult; Blood Donors*; Blood Preservation*; Body Height/genetics; Body Mass Index; Body Weight/genetics; Erythrocyte Indices; Erythrocytes/chemistry; Erythrocytes/physiology*; Female; Hemoglobins/analysis; Hemolysis/genetics*; Humans; Leukocyte Reduction Procedures; Male; Metabolome/genetics; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; Time Factors; Twins, Dizygotic; Twins, Monozygotic; Young Adult

Back
to Top