Effect of Drugs on Red Cell Fragility

Abstract

MANY drugs which, affect the nervous system seem to be capable of altering the physical properties of cell membranes¹. The concept of membrane stabilizing drugs has evolved since Spirtes and Guth² observed an inhibition of mitochondrial swelling in the presence of chlorpromazine. Recently, a wide range of local anaesthetics and central nervous system depressants have been shown to stabilize the red cell membrane³. If concurrent membrane changes in nerve cells occurred and produced a decreased ionic permeability of axons or an inhibition of transmitter release, this would result in a depression of neuronal activity. It is unlikely, however, that drugs which act on membranes have a similar action on all cells, and in some cases specific organelles may be selectively involved. For example, Tanaka and Tizuka⁴ showed that some anti-inflammatory drugs decrease the permeability of the lysosomal membrane to acid hydrolases. Also, even though barbiturates decrease the excitability of pre and postsynaptic neurenal membrane, with low concentrations of the drug, the predominant effect appears to be an inhibition of release of neurotransmitter⁵.