The Influence of Red‐Cell Thickness on the Oxygen Dissociation Curve of Blood

Abstract

IT is known that in anaemia the oxygen dissociation curve of the blood is shifted to the right (Richards and Strauss, 1927). This was regarded by as a possible compensatory mechanism of the anaemic state. Although the shift observed by Richards and Strauss was at the abnormal plasma pH of 7.64, a similar shift of the oxygen dissociation curve to the right at the standard plasma pH of 7.4 was later reported by Dill and co-workers (1928) and by Isac, Matthes and Yamanaka (1938). Until now, a satisfactory explanation of this phcnomenon has been lacking. The shift was attributed by Dill and colleagues to the relative acidity of red cells in anaemia, which had previously been directly measured by Hampson and Maizels (1927). In a study of the oxygen dissociation curve in various human anaemias, Kennedy and Valtis (1954) found that the curve, even after correction to standard cell pH, remained shifted to the right. The only exception to this rule was the blood of patients with spherocytic anaemias in which the curve was normal in position after correction to standard cell pH. Kennedy and Valtis suspected that this difference was due to the greater thickness of the spherocytic red cells. The object of the present study was to observe the effect of alterations in red-cell shape on the blood oxygen dissociation curve and, by animal experiments, to isolate this effect from the unknown effects of anaemia. MATERIAL AND METHODSAll the observations were made on the blood of adult male guinea-pigs. Thirteen animals were used for the preliminary study of the oxygen dissociation curve of normal guinea-pigs. Spherocytosis of red cells without anaemia was produced in five animals by the intraperitoneal injection of anti-guinea-pig red-cell serum prepared in rabbits by a modification of the method of Dameshek, Schwartz and Gross (1938). Red cells thinner than normal were obtaincd from nine guinea-pigs splenectomized 2 to 3 months before. In addition, anaemias of various kinds were induced in other groups of guinea-pigs. In four animals an acute posthaemorrhagic anaemia was produced by repeated withdrawal of blood by sterile cardiac puncture; three animals were rendered anaemic by chronic lead poisoning; and in fivc animals larger doses of immune serum than had been used to produce spherocytosis alone were used to produce spherocytosis with anaemia.

Zum Verlauf der O₂-Dissoziationskurve bei Gesunden sowie bei Kranken mit angeborenem zyanotischem Herzfehler bzw. chronischem obstruktivem Lungenemphysem

“…B. infolge Anhäufung von Kohlensäure oder Milch säure [23,52], im Coma diabeticum, bei Urämie [24,50]. Eine Rechtsver schiebung der 0 2-DK wurde auch bei verminderter Hb-Konzentration be obachtet (verschiedene Anämieformen mit Ausnahme der Sphärozytose [24,27,47]), ferner bei Abnahme der Erythrozytendicke (hämolytische und apiastische Anämien [30,47]) und schliesslich auch bei Herzkranken [13,19,35].…”

“…Eine Linksverlagerung, also ein steilerer Kurvenverlauf, tritt nicht nur bei niedrigeren Temperaturen oder pH-Verschiebungen nach der alkalotischen Seite auf, sondern auch bei vermindertem 0 2-Druck [3,31], bei Sphärozytose [47], Lungentuberkulose [51] und beim chronischen obstruktiven Lungenemphysem [11,13,14,21,28].…”