In vitro effects of short-chain aliphatic alcohols, benzyl alcohol and chlorpromazine on the transport of precursors of monoamines across the human erythrocyte membrane

Effects of ethanol on red blood cell rheological behavior

Consumption of red wine is associated with a decreased risk of several cardiovascular diseases (e.g., coronary artery disease, stroke), but unfortunately literature reports regarding ethanol's effects on hemorheological parameters are not concordant. In the present study, red blood cell (RBC) deformability was tested via laser ektacytometry (LORCA, 0.3-30 Pa) using two approaches: 1) addition of ethanol to whole blood at 0.25%-2% followed by incubation and testing in ethanol-free LORCA medium; 2) addition of ethanol to the LORCA medium at 0.25%-6% then testing untreated native RBC in these media. The effects of ethanol on deformability for oxidatively stressed RBC were investigated as were changes of RBC aggregation (Myrenne Aggregometer) for cells in autologous plasma or 3% 70 kDa dextran. Significant dose-related increases of RBC deformability were observed at 0.25% (p < 0.05) and higher concentrations only if ethanol was in the LORCA medium; no changes occurred for cells previously incubated with ethanol then tested in ethanol-free medium. The impaired deformability of cells pre-exposed to oxidative stress was improved only if ethanol was in the LORCA medium. RBC aggregation decreased with concentration at 0.25% and higher for cells in both autologous plasma and dextran 70. Our results indicate that ethanol reversibly improves erythrocyte deformability and irreversibly decreases erythrocyte aggregation; the relevance of these results to the health benefits of moderate wine consumption require further investigation.

The effect of alcohols on red blood cell mechanical properties and membrane fluidity depends on their molecular size

The role of membrane fluidity in determining red blood cell (RBC) deformability has been suggested by a number of studies. The present investigation evaluated alterations of RBC membrane fluidity, deformability and stability in the presence of four linear alcohols (methanol, ethanol, propanol and butanol) using ektacytometry and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. All alcohols had a biphasic effect on deformability such that it increased then decreased with increasing concentration; the critical concentration for reversal was an inverse function of molecular size. EPR results showed biphasic changes of near-surface fluidity (i.e., increase then decrease) and a decreased fluidity of the lipid core; rank order of effectiveness was butanol > propanol > ethanol > methanol, with a significant correlation between near-surface fluidity and deformability (r = 0.697; p<0.01). The presence of alcohol enhanced the impairment of RBC deformability caused by subjecting cells to 100 Pa shear stress for 300 s, with significant differences from control being observed at higher concentrations of all four alcohols. The level of hemolysis was dependent on molecular size and concentration, whereas echinocytic shape transformation (i.e., biconcave disc to crenated morphology) was observed only for ethanol and propanol. These results are in accordance with available data obtained on model membranes. They document the presence of mechanical links between RBC deformability and near-surface membrane fluidity, chain length-dependence of the ability of alcohols to alter RBC mechanical behavior, and the biphasic response of RBC deformability and near-surface membrane fluidity to increasing alcohol concentrations.

Effects of Chlorpromazine·HCl on the Structural Parameters of Bovine Brain Membranes

Fluorescence probes located in different membrane regions were used to evaluate the effects of chlorpromazine .HCl on structural parameters (transbilayer lateral mobility, annular lipid fluidity, protein distribution, and lipid bilayer thickness) of synaptosomal plasma membrane vesicles (SPMVs) isolated from bovine cerebral cortex. The experimental procedure was based on the selective quenching of 1,3-di(1-pyrenyl)propane (Py-3-Py) by trinitrophenyl groups, radiationless energy transfer from the tryptophan of membrane proteins to Py-3-Py, and energy transfer from Py-3-Py monomers to 1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulfonic acid (ANS). In this study, chlorpromazine .HCl decreased the lateral mobility of Py-3-Py in a concentration dependent-manner, showed a greater ordering effect on the inner monolayer than on the outer monolayer, decreased annular lipid fluidity in a dose dependent-manner, and contracted the membrane lipid bilayer. Furthermore, the drug was found to have a clustering effect on membrane proteins.