Dresden 2014 – scientific programme
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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 7: Posters: Cell adhesion, mechanics and migration
BP 7.44: Poster
Monday, March 31, 2014, 17:30–19:30, P3
Volume and morphological changes in single erythrocytes at high hydrostatic pressure — •Alfons Schulte1, Sang Hoon Park1, Silki Arora1, Alesia Antoine1, and Debopam Chakrabarti2 — 1Physics Department and College of Optics and Photonics, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816-2385, USA — 2Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Central Florida, Orlando, USA
High pressure can change the cell morphology and membrane fluidity. We combine microscopy and spectroscopic probes to study pressure effects at the single cell level. In individual red blood cells large, reversible volume changes are observed over the pressure range from 0.1 to 200 MPa. In erythrocytes infected with the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum we observe clear differences in the deformability and between the compression and decompression curves. A possible mechanism for the reversible volume change may involve transport of water through the phospholipid membrane.