The physiologic role of erythrocytes in oxygen delivery and implications for blood storage

Erythrocytes are not just oxygen delivery devices but play an active metabolic role in modulating microvascular blood flow. Hemoglobin and red blood cell morphology change as local oxygen levels fall, eliciting the release of adenosine triphosphate and nitric oxide to initiate local vasodilation. Ag...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inCritical care nursing clinics of North America Vol. 26; no. 3; p. 325
Main Authors Benedik, Penelope S, Hamlin, Shannan K
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 01.09.2014
Subjects
Biological Transport
Erythrocytes - physiology
Hemoglobins - metabolism
Humans
Microcirculation
Nitric Oxide - metabolism
Oxygen - blood
Oxygen - metabolism
Hemoglobin
Red blood cell
Storage lesion
Oxygen transport
Nitric oxide
Online AccessGet more information

Cover

More Information
Summary:Erythrocytes are not just oxygen delivery devices but play an active metabolic role in modulating microvascular blood flow. Hemoglobin and red blood cell morphology change as local oxygen levels fall, eliciting the release of adenosine triphosphate and nitric oxide to initiate local vasodilation. Aged erythrocytes undergo physical and functional changes such that some of the red cell's most physiologically helpful attributes are diminished. This article reviews the functional anatomy and applied physiology of the erythrocyte and the microcirculation with an emphasis on how erythrocytes modulate microvascular function. The effects of cell storage on the metabolic functions of the erythrocyte are also briefly discussed.
ISSN:1558-3481
DOI:10.1016/j.ccell.2014.04.002