Equilibrium exchange of dimethyl methylphosphonate across the human red cell membrane measured using NMR spin transfer

The ³¹P NMR spectrum of dimethyl methylphosphonate, in a suspension of human erythrocytes in a hypertonic medium, is characterized by separate intra- and extracellular resonances. The compound crosses the red cell membrane too rapidly for its transport to be monitored using conventional NMR time-course techniques. In the present work we adapted the saturation transfer method to measure the unidirectional flux of dimethyl methylphosphonate into the cell at equilibrium and thereby gained an estimate of its permeability coefficient. Repeated measurements on low hematocrit cell suspensions showed no significant variation in the permeability coefficients for cells from five different donors. Saturation transfer measurements conducted over a range of hematocrits demonstrated the hematocrit dependence of the unidirectional rate constant for dimethyl methylphosphonate influx. The calculated permeability coefficient was independent of hematocrit.