Computational investigation of flow dynamics and mechanical retention of age-associated red blood cells in the spleen

Abstract

The shape and deformability of red blood cells (RBCs) change with age, increasing their likelihood of becoming trapped in the splenic interendothelial slits (IESs) and being removed from the circulation. Existing evidence suggests that cell size and viscoelasticity vary with age, which impedes understanding of the mechanical retention of aged RBCs in the spleen. We present a computational study of the flow dynamics, shape changes, and mechanical retention of age-associated RBCs in the splenic IES. The results show that increasing RBC membrane viscosity slows the flow process early in aging, while increased sphericity due to cell size reduction eventually leads to RBC retention.