Why do red blood cells have asymmetric shapes even in a symmetric flow?
Phys Rev Lett
; 103(18): 188101, 2009 Oct 30.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-19905834
ABSTRACT
Understanding why red blood cells (RBCs) move with an asymmetric shape (slipperlike shape) in small blood vessels is a long-standing puzzle in blood circulatory research. By considering a vesicle (a model system for RBCs), we discovered that the slipper shape results from a loss in stability of the symmetric shape. It is shown that the adoption of a slipper shape causes a significant decrease in the velocity difference between the cell and the imposed flow, thus providing higher flow efficiency for RBCs. Higher membrane rigidity leads to a dramatic change in the slipper morphology, thus offering a potential diagnostic tool for cell pathologies.
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01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Forma Celular
/
Eritrócitos
/
Modelos Biológicos
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Phys Rev Lett
Ano de publicação:
2009
Tipo de documento:
Article