ERYTHROCYTE LIPIDS: A COMPARISON OF NORMAL YOUNG AND NORMAL OLD POPULATIONS.

Abstract

Abstract Lipid fractions of normal young and normal old red cells have been measured and the concentrations related to the individual cell, to surface area of the cell, and to a unit volume of cells. The older cells contain a decreased concentration of total lipid as compared with younger cells, regardless of the mode of expression of results; statistically significant differences occurred in the cholesterol concentrations as referred to the individual cell, to the cell surface area, and in the total phospholipid concentrations as related to the single cell. The results suggest that cellular factors may contribute to the maintenance of erythrocytic cholesterol concentrations and that the evaluation of lipid concentrations in normal and abnormal cells would be most satisfactorily obtained if similarly aged populations of normal and abnormal cells were compared.