P-092: RED BLOOD CELL GLUCOSE CONSUMPTION AND METABOLISM IN SICKLE CELL DISEASE

Abstract

Purpose: Glucose is the single most essential component of the red blood cells (RBCs), being its sole energy provider and therefore is implicated in the energy metabolomics of the RBCs. This in turn play a crucial role in RBC lifespan, which in Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) patients is reduced to about 20 days from the usual average 120 days. This motivated us to investigate the process of glucose consumption and metabolism in red blood cells of Sickle Cell Patient of Odisha. Materials and methods: Blood samples of homozygous SCD patients (HbSS) were collected randomly with informed consent from different parts of Odisha state depending on the availability and accessibility of the subjects. The samples were studied for their hematological and biochemical parameters including levels of glucose. The red blood cells of SCD patients aged and sex matched normal (HbAA) as well as sickle cell traits (HbAS) were separated and incubated for different time intervals to measure the glucose consumption and Pyruvate and Lactate formation. Along with this the membrane stability of the cells were estimated and time dependent glucose uptake was also carried out. Identification of the haemoglobin variant was done by performing sickling test, haemoglobin electrophoresis and HPLC Hb. Variant analysis. All the biochemical estimations were done following the standard methods. Results: In the red blood cells of SCD cases (HbSS), the levels of glucose consumption were noted to be the higher than the sickle cell trait (HbAS) cases and control/normal (HbAA) samples. Concurrently, formation of blood Pyruvate and Lactate showed higher rate in comparison to HBAA and HbAS red cells indicating raised metabolic turnover in the sickle RBCs. In the time dependent study, the red cells of HbSS patients showed higher rate of glucose consumption compared to trait and normal cells. This data also correlates with the higher hemolytic features of the RBCs showing lower membrane stability with increased metabolism. Conclusion: The sickle cell mutation causes much more damage to the life of RBCs than mere morphological sickling of cells. The energy consumption plays a vital role in the life span, shape, stability and overall biochemistry of the RBCs, thus being a critical factor of RBC metabolism, which in turn determines the overall blood-based health of the SCD patients. Understanding and pin-pointing the key factors of energy metabolism thus holds many potential and promising factors in controlling the sickling, and indeed overall health of patients in case of sickle cell disease. The authors do not declare any conflict of interest