title: Effects of morphine on rheological properties of rat red blood cells.
abstract: To evaluate the effect of morphine on red blood cells, in vivo and in vitro rat models of morphine dependence were established. Rheological properties of rat red cells were measured by ektacytometry; the biophysical changes in the membrane of rat red cells were measured by the Fourier-Transformed Infrared technique (FT-IR) and the fluorescence depolarization method. The results show that the membrane fluidity of red cells was greatly reduced by morphine and the secondary structure of membrane proteins was changed. This suggests that morphine affects the rat red cell membrane directly, rather than through opioids-receptors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biophysics, Beijing Medical University, China.
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Nie
authors.forename: Z Y
authors.initials: ZY
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Z Y
authors.initials: ZY
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cheng
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004907:Erythrocyte Deformability / Q000187:drug effects*; D004910:Erythrocyte Membrane / Q000187:drug effects*; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D008560:Membrane Fluidity / Q000187:drug effects; D009020:Morphine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009294:Narcotics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
chemical_list: D009294:Narcotics; D009020:Morphine