CELL ELECTROPHORETIC MOBILITY AND GLYCEROL LYSIS OF HUMAN ERYTHROCYTES IN VARIOUS DISEASES

Using an automated cell electrophoresis system equipped with an image processor, we studied electrophoretic mobilites of erythrocytes of hea lthy donors and of patients suffering from systemic lupus erythematosu s (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), hypergammaglobulinemia and diabete s mellitus (DM). On average, erythrocytes from SLE patients showed mea n electrophoretic mobilities (EPM) which were significantly lower (p < 0.005) than the EPM of red blood cells of normal donors. Evaluation o f mean EPM and standard deviations revealed that three groups of SLE p atients could be distinguished regarding the electrophoretic behavior of their erythrocytes. Some patients had red blood cells with normal E PM, others had erythrocytes with significantly reduced EPM, and a thir d group appeared to have both kinds of erythrocytes. In addition, eryt hrocytes of various SLE patients showed enhanced resistance to lysis b y glycerol and their membranes contained less quantities of band 3 pro teins.