Effects of experimental endogenous hyperlipemia on circulating leukocytes and erythrocytes

Effects of hyperlipemia on circulating leukocytes and erythrocytes were studied in dogs which were given repeated, intravenous injections of a nonionic detergent, Triton WR-1339. Erythrocyte lipid concentrations increased from 3.6±0.9 mg/10¹⁰ cells in control animals to 9.3±1.5 mg in the hyperlipemic group. This increase was accompanied by a shift in the distribution of total fatty acids toward a higher percentage of saturated and monounsaturated acids. In contrast to the changes observed in erythrocytes, the leukocyte lipid content remained unaltered in dogs with serum cholesterol levels ranging from 500 to more than 2,000 mg/100 ml. Leukocyte counts rose whereas hematocrit values, hemoglobin concentrations, and erythrocyte counts decreased. Oxygen utilization studies showed no significant metabolic differences between leukocytes which were isolated from hyperlipemic or control animals. Circulating leukocytes in dogs with an endogenously induced hyperlipemia were shown therefore to maintain normal lipid concentrations and did not participate in lipophage formation, as reported for certain diet-induced lipemias.