Rabbit Erythrocyte Hemolysis by Lipophilic,Aryl Molecules ∗

Summary

Indole, skatole, and 17 additional aryl molecules can interact with the cellular membrane to produce hemolysis of the rabbit erythrocyte. The minimum concentrations of aryl molecules required to produce total lysis of 1.4 × 10⁸ red blood cells are correlated with the lipophilicity of the molecules as measured by their partitioning across the interface barrier of n-octanol: aqueous phosphate buffer, 50 mM, pH 7.4, phases. Hemolysis requires lesser amounts of a molecule that is lipophilic than one that is hydrophilic.