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Intracellular rheology of red blood cells
The characterisation of erythrocyte stiffness and its heterogeneity in a blood sample is a key parameter for the description of erythrocyte pathologies. I will present a method for investigating the intracellular rheology of red blood cells and the heterogeneity of the population using molecular rotors. These are fluorescent probes that are sensitive to viscosity in viscous fluids. I will illustrate the value of this approach in the context of red cell pathologies such as sickle cell anaemia.
A. Briole, T. Podgorski & B. Abou, Molecular rotors as intracellular probes of red blood cells rigidity, Soft Matter 17, 4525 (2021).
A. Briole & B. Abou, Molecular rotors in haemoglobin and bovine serum albumin proteins, Journal of Royal Society Interface 19 : 20220709 (2022).