ALTERED FATTY-ACID, CHOLESTEROL AND NA+ K+ ATPASE ACTIVITY IN ERYTHROCYTE-MEMBRANE OF RHEUMATOID-ARTHRITIS PATIENTS/

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflamatory disease whose cause remains obscure. Blood from 15 RA patients and controls was taken and their ghosts separated. The ghosts were analysed for cholesterol cont ent, Na+/K+ ATPase activity and eicosapentaenoic acid. The cholesterol content in the ghosts of RA patients was significantly lower as compa red with the set of controls. There was a major difference in the acti vity of Na+/K+ ATPase between the two groups with RA patients showing significantly elevated activity. The ghosts of the RA patients exhibit ed major abnormality in the polyunsaturated fatty acids of phospholipi ds with the level of eicosapentaenoic acid (omega-3, 20:5) being signi ficantly reduced.