Liposome-type artificial red blood cells stabilized with carboxymethyl chitin.

Liposome-type artificial red blood cells (ARBC) stabilized with carboxymethyl chitin (CM chitin) containing human hemolysate were prepared by a two-step emulsification technique, Oxygen binding abilities of the ARBC and human hemolysate were measured by the use of a Clark-type oxygen electrode. Both of theARBC and human hemolysate exhibited a striking similarity in oxygenation behavior, indicating that the oxygen binding ability of the former is almost identical with that of the latter. Disintegration tests on the ARBC using the enzymes (lysozyme, chitinase and phospholipase C), that can digest the components of the ARBC membrane, suggested that the membrane has a structure in which the phospholipid layer is covered by a mesh of CM chitin molecules. The acute toxicity of the ARBC to male mice (BALB/c) was examined and the LD 50 value of the ARBC for 2 ml of intravenous injection was evaluated to be 13.8 ml/kg by means of the Litchfield-Wilcoxon method.