Studying the aging of banked erythrocytes using a fluorescence marker, hypericin

Banked blood used for transfusions can be banked for 42 days, but there are several issues that can make it unusable: biochemical and biomechanical changes that leads to storage lesions of erythrocytes. These changes can cause multiple health problems for patients who receive 42 day banked blood. The aim of the project was to develop an efficient method for determining the quality of banked erythrocytes using hypericin as a fluorescent marker for assessing the erythrocyte membrane integrity. We made biochemical determinations for the oxidative stress, antioxidant capacity and energy metabolism. Concomitantly, we monitored hypericin fluorescence added to erythrocytes with the aim to highlight their membrane changes occurring during the storage period. The results that we obtained indicate that erythrocytes suffer a strong oxidative stress during storage, correlated with a decrease of antioxidant capacity, in association with alteration of their membranes. Our data suggest that hypericin can be used as a fluorescent marker for determining the quality of banked blood.