This study was performed to investigate possible differences in erythrocyte metabolism between short-term and long-term hemodialysis patients, especially before and after each hemodialysis (HD).
The subjects were 30 short-term (shorter than 1 year), and 30 long-term (longer than 5 years) hemodialysis patients with chronic renal failure, and 10 healthy adults as a control group.
Measured parameters were G6P, F6P, FDP, DHAP, GA3P, 2, 3-DPG, 3PG, 2PG, PEP, pyruvate, and lactate as glucose metabolites and ATP, ADP, and AMP as high-energy phosphates. Arterial blood gas analysis and measurement of serum electrolytes (Na, K and Cl) were also performed.
G6P, F6P, FDP, GA3P and 2, 3-DPG increased in the order of control group, <short-term HD group<long-term HD group, indicating accelerated glucose metabolism in erythrocytes. Significant increases in G6P and F6P in both HD groups, and more importantly, increase in FDP in the long-term HD group suggested activated phosphofructokinase, which is one of the rate-limiting factors in the glycolytic pathway. However, G6P, F6P and FDP decreased in the post-HD period compared with the predialysis period in both HD groups.
ATP and ADP increased significantly in both HD groups compared with the control group. These two nucleotides decreased in the post-HD period. However, energy charge in all three groups was almost at the same level in the predialysis period and was unchanged after HD. There was a linear relationship between 2, 3-DPG and the duration of HD. Multivalent mathematical correlation analysis of the measured parameters revealed a clear and marked difference between long-term and short-term HD groups, which indicated that a difference in homeostasis was established according to the duration of HD.
These results suggest that glucose metabolism of erythrocytes is activated by the activation of phosphofructokinase in hemodialysis patients with chronic renal failure, and that its extent is related to the duration of hemodialysis, while activated glucose metabolism is brought towards normal after each hemodialysis.
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