The protein composition of human erythrocyte membranes was analyzed by
discontinuous gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). A protein
with a monomer mass of 95,000 daltons and the glycoprotein of highest monomer
mass were both altered by extensive pronase digestion of whole erythrocytes. This confirmed
that these two proteins were exposed to the external surface of the erythrocyte.
Membranes prepared from fresh blood were compared with membranes prepared from
blood stored for 3 weeks under blood bank conditions. In membranes from stored blood,
a single major protein band, the surface protein of 95,000 daltons, was so extensively
denatured that it was not monomerized by 0.1% SDS, and migrated much more slowly
through the gel. When the membrane was dissolved in 1.0% SDS, this band was completely
monomerized, and the electrophoresis pattern was indistinguishable from that
produced by membranes prepared from fresh blood. Treatment with dithiothreitol or
mercaptoethanol did not solubilize this band. Electrophoresis under the same conditions,
followed by staining by the periodic acid-Schiff base technique showed that the denaturable
protein was not a glycoprotein, and that the surface glycoprotein was not affected by
aging. This glycoprotein migrated in the same position when membranes from fresh and
stored blood were compared.