Spontaneous endocytosis in human neonatal and adult red blood cells: comparison to drug-induced endocytosis and to receptor-mediated endocytosis.

Neonatal RBC contain many more spontaneous endocytic vacuoles than do adult RBC. It is not known if this difference is a result of an increase in production of vacuoles in the neonatal RBC (as is the case in drug-induced endocytosis), or is the result of a less effective neonatal macrophagic "pitting" process. Using an in vitro model of spontaneous endocytosis, we compared the rate and quantity of vacuoles and the shape of cord and adult RBC containing pits, visible by interference contrast microscopy (Nomarski method). The mechanism of the spontaneous endocytosis was explored using different inhibitors: sodium vanadate an inhibitor of ATPases, sodium fluoride which inhibits the generation of ATP and sodium cyanide a potent inhibitor of oxidative phosphorylation. We then compared spontaneous endocytosis with two other forms of RBC endocytosis: drug-induced endocytosis and receptor-mediated endocytosis. Spontaneous endocytosis is in fact increased in neonatal RBC initially but the increase in number of RBC containing pits after 144 hr of incubation is almost the same in adult RBC and neonatal RBC. Comparing spontaneous endocytosis with drug-induced endocytosis, it appears that their mechanisms are different in that spontaneous endocytosis is not preceded by stomatocytic shape change and is not inhibited by sodium vanadate or sodium fluoride as is the case for drug-induced endocytosis. Spontaneous endocytosis is different than transferrin receptor-mediated endocytosis because it occurs in many RBC, not only in the motile R1 reticulocytes and is not inhibited by sodium cyanide as is receptor-mediated endocytosis. Thus spontaneous endocytosis appears to be different than drug-induced endocytosis and transferrin receptor-mediated endocytosis. The increase in spontaneous endocytosis in cord RBC seen in vivo is probably a consequence of an immaturity of the neonatal macrophage pitting process.