Fusiform erythrocytes in Angora goats resembling sickle cells: influence of temperature, pH, and oxygenation on cell shape
Jain, N.C.; Kono, C.S.
American Journal of Veterinary Research 38(7): 983-990
1977
ISSN/ISBN: 0002-9645 PMID: 18973 Document Number: 123561
Highly pleomorphic erythrocytes were seen in blood samples from 12 Angora goats with no hematologic abnormality. Besides normal discoid biconcave erythrocytes, there were spindle-shaped, fusiform, matchstick-shaped, trianglular and other odd-shaped erythrocytes. The morphology of fusiform and spindle-shaped erythrocytes, believed to results for intracellular polymerization of Hb into longitundinal tubular fibers, was affected by conditions known to cause depolymerization of abnormal Hb associated with sickle cell formation in man and deer. Hb and globin electrophoresis failed to reveal any gross abnormality of Hb in goats with many fusiform and spindle-shaped erythrocytes. Typical long fusiform and spindle-shaped erythrocytes were seen in fresh blood and were present in comparable numbers in blood kept at room temperature or at 40.degree. C for 6 h and in suspensions of washed blood cells in 30 mM tris-buffered 0.9% NaCl solution (pH 7.4-7.9). These forms were lost within 1 h at 4.degree. C and with wider variations in pH. Oxygenation of washed erythrocytic suspensions did not significantly affect the erythrocyte morphology, but deoxygenation transformed the majority into stout fusiform and discoid cells. decreasing the proportion of fusiform cells by nearly 50%. Reoxygenation increased the number of such cells to near base line, but most of the erythrocytes at this time acquired surface roughness. Variations in the morphology of fusiform and spindle-shaped erythrocytes with pH and O2 tension indicated partial reversibility of such erythrocytes in vitro and a similarity to the sickling phenomenon of deer erythrocytes.