Abstract: | Experimental and clinical studies have demonstrated the effects of hydroxycoumarin derivatives (pelentan) on the composition and correlation of phospholipids (PL) in red cell biomembranes. PL such as cardiolipin, cholesterol and its esters phosphatidylethanolamine, and phosphatidylcholine experienced the greatest changes. The changes in the composition of biomembrane PL were accompanied by an increase in the total cholesterol content in red cell biomembranes and by an increase in the total and free non-esterified fatty acids in blood plasma (P less than 0.05). At the same time the changes were discovered in the activity of transketolase and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase limiting the pentosephosphate shunt. |