D. Sabolovic et al., Covalent binding of polyethylene glycol to the surface of red blood cells as detected and followed up by cell electrophoresis and rheological methods, ELECTROPHOR, 21(2), 2000, pp. 301-306
Cyanuric chloride activated polyethylene glycol (PEG)-5000 was covalently c
oupled to murine and human red blood cells (pegylated RBC). Our purpose was
to camouflage RBC receptors, which is necessary for parasite invasion, a p
rocess essential to sustain parasitemia. Cell electrophoretic mobility anal
ysis (CEM) of pegylated RBC distinguished a new population of cells bearing
characteristic GEM. Pegylation of RBC also modified their rheological prop
erties, which were documented by evaluation of cell deformability (based on
cell transit time through calibrated micropores) and cell aggregation (as
measured by ultrasonic interferometry). Homologous transfusion of pegylated
RBC into murine malaria-infected mice had no significant effect on the cer
ebral malaria death rate in Plasmodium berghei-infected mice, but it reduce
d the peripheral blood parasitemia by a factor 2 while in Plasmodium yoelii
infected mice, the parasitemia was dramatically reduced by a factor of 4.
These experiments demonstrate that transfusion of pegylated RBC may inhibit
peripheral parasitemia. Cell electrophoresis appears to be a useful tool t
o allow in vivo detection and to investigate the fate of transfused pegylat
ed RBC.