Microfluidic Characterization of Red Blood Cells Microcirculation under Oxidative Stress

Abstract

Microcirculation is one of the basic functional processes where the main gas exchange between red blood cells (RBCs) and surrounding tissues occurs. It is greatly influenced by the shape and deformability of RBCs, which can be affected by oxidative stress induced by different drugs and diseases leading to anemia. Here we investigated how in vitro microfluidic characterization of RBCs transit velocity in microcapillaries can indicate cells damage and its correlation with clinical hematological analysis. For this purpose, we compared an SU-8 mold with an Si-etched mold for fabrication of PDMS microfluidic devices and quantitatively figured out that oxidative stress induced by tert-Butyl hydroperoxide splits all RBCs into two subpopulations of normal and slow cells according to their transit velocity. Obtained results agree with the hematological analysis showing that such changes in RBCs velocities are due to violations of shape, volume, and increased heterogeneity of the cells. These data show that characterization of RBCs transport in microfluidic devices can directly reveal violations of microcirculation caused by oxidative stress. Therefore, it can be used for characterization of the ability of RBCs to move in microcapillaries, estimating possible side effects of cancer chemotherapy, and predicting the risk of anemia.

Prediction of the left ventricular mass index in hypertensive patients using the product of red cell distribution width and mean corpuscular volume

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Elevated red cell distribution width predicts residual dizziness in patients with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo

“…Oxidative stress is a critical factor that causes microcirculation disturbance ( 33 ). OS induces erythrocyte adhesion to the vascular endothelium and reduces erythrocyte deformability ( 34 ). Moreover, the elevated RDW promotes platelet activation and aggregation, which serves as a marker of the procoagulant status of RBCs ( 35 ).…”

Atomic Force Microscopy and High-Resolution Spectrophotometry for Study of Anoxemia and Normoxemia in Model Experiment In Vitro

“…Figure 9B shows function (2) for the values of parameters a = 0.02, b = 2, and F 0 = 55. On the graph, C O 2 is the units corresponding to oxygen pressure P O 2 (mmHg).…”

“…The structure and function of red blood cells (RBCs) in the blood are crucial for gas exchange between blood and tissues, especially for critical care patients [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]. The oxygen content plays an important role in these processes.…”