Stiff red blood cells drive sickle cell disease severity

A new breakthrough study led by researchers at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities could explain why patients with the same genetic sickle cell mutation experience different levels of pain, organ damage and response to treatment.

The study published in Science Advances, shows that the severity of sickle cell disease is not best predicted by the average "thickness" of a patient's blood, but by the specific behavior of a small population of highly "stiff" red blood cells. These stiff cells reorganize themselves within the flow, pushing their way to the edges of blood vessels-a process called margination. This creates significantly more friction and resistance than flexible cells.