[Functional activity of cell membranes in multiple sclerosis].

A study was made of the activity of the marker enzymes of plasma membranes Na+,K(+)-ATPase and AChE comparatively to the changes in red blood cell suspension viscosity. Interferometry and capillary viscosimetry were employed to examine red cell membranes of 100 patients suffering from multiple sclerosis. In the interval of physiological temperatures, the two temperatures areas -35 degrees and 40 degrees C characterized by specific behavior of the enzymes and viscosity changes were discovered. These temperature areas are viewed from the standpoints of temperature-induced structural transformations. Each of them has a definite clinical importance for the estimation of the activity of the underlying process. The fact of the existence of the complexly organized system of abnormal structural transformations attests to gross imbalance of red cell membranes. This phenomenon may also be observed as regards other membranes including the membrane of the oligodendrocyte. In addition to the evidence for the membrano-patho-chemical component in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis, the temperature-induced structural transformations play the role of diagnostic criteria for multiple sclerosis.