The in vivo regeneration of red cell 2,3 diphosphoglyceric acid (DPG) after transfusion of stored blood.

Abstract

Abstract Investigations have been carried out to determine the rate at, which 2,3 DPG is regenerated when acid-citrate-dextrose (ACD)-stored erythrocytes are transfused. The red cells of 3 anemic type A patients were labeled with Cr 51 . The following day, the patients were transfused with 2,3 DPG-depleted type O cells. The donor cells were separated from the recipient cells by differential agglutination, and the degree of contamination with recipient cells was estimated from the Cr 51 activity of the recovered cells. Regeneration of 2,3 DPG was found to be rapid, with restoration of nearly half of the 2,3 DPG which had been lost within 4 hours of transfusion. These investigations show that regeneration of 2,3 DPG in vivo is considerably more rapid than has been observed in in vitro studies.