A compensatory mechanism improving red cell membrane fluidity in hemodialysed patients.

A fluorescence polarization technique with 1,6-diphenyl 1,3,5-hexatriene as a fluorescent probe was used to determine the fluidity of red cell membranes from hemodialysed patients before and after dialysis. After dialysis, there was a decrease in fluidity and activation energy values revealed a significantly changed distribution. The membrane lipid composition showed a significant increase in cholesterol after dialysis (p less than 0.001) and a significant reduction in saturated fatty acids (p less than 0.01) with an increase in unsaturated fatty acids (p less than 0.05). A compensatory mechanism could be suggested involving a reduction of saturated fatty acids in response to the increase in the cholesterol/phospholipid ratio. This could lead to an optimization of membrane fluidity.