THE MECHANISM WHEREBY PEPTONE FRACTIONS AFFORD PROTECTION AGAINST FREEZE-THAW INJURY TO CELL MEMBRANE.
Abstract
From the results of a series of experiments on the effects of cooling and thawing on a range of micro-organisms and human red cells it would appear that there are certain fundamental consequences of cooling and freezing on lipo-protein membranes common to all cells. Ionic damage with the possible weakening of hydrophobic bonds and the resulting destabilization of macromolecular configuration is thought to be a primary cause of damage on cooling to temperatures above the eutectic temperature of the medium and can be prevented by the presence of compounds which promote structure formation within water, e.g. phosphates, acetates, glycerol and peptides. Below the eutectic temperature peptide protection seems to be more specific and may act either by altering the permeability of the cell membrane and so prevent the formation of intracellular ice or alternatively the peptides may act by a direct substitution within the membranes and so prevent cross linkage between active groups which could lead to the destruction of the cell on thawing. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 31, 1969
- Accession Number
- AD0691218
Entities
People
- J. Desmond Davies
- Peter R. M. Steele
- Ronald I. N. Greaves
Organizations
- University of Cambridge