A lipid molecule normally on the inside of red blood cells gets on the outside after donating blood

What is it about?

Phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) is a lipid normally on the inside of the edge (cell membrane) of all cells. When PE is exposed on the outside of the cell membrane, it signals for the body to destroy the cell, can contribute to clots and alters the body's defenses (immune system) among other things. We showed for the first time that PE is progressively exposed on red blood cells (RBCs) and during storage.

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Why is it important?

When you donate blood, the red blood cells are still undergoing metabolism in storage. The longer they are in storage, the faster they are destroyed/recycled inside the body after getting transfused into patients. This is called the "RBC storage lesion," and scientists still don't fully understand this. Additionally, in certain populations, this fast and extra destruction of RBCs can cause problems with infection, clots, or cancer recurrence. PE on the outside of RBCs could be a critical factor in the storage lesion.