The Post-Storage Performance of RBCs from Beta-Thalassemia Trait Donors Is Related to Their Storability Profile

Blood donors with beta-thalassemia traits (βThal(+)) have proven to be good “storers”, since their stored RBCs are resistant to lysis and resilient against oxidative/proteotoxic stress. To examine the performance of these RBCs post-storage, stored βThal(+) and control RBCs were reconstituted in plasma donated from transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemic patients and healthy controls, and incubated for 24 h at body temperature. Several physiological parameters, including hemolysis, were evaluated. Moreover, labeled fresh/stored RBCs from the two groups were transfused in mice to assess 24 h recovery. All hemolysis metrics were better in the group of heterozygotes and distinguished them against controls in the plasma environment. The reconstituted βThal(+) samples also presented higher proteasome activity and fewer procoagulant extracellular vesicles. Transfusion to mice demonstrated that βThal(+) RBCs present a marginal trend for higher recovery, regardless of the recipient’s immune background and the RBC storage age. According to correlation analysis, several of these advantageous post-storage characteristics are related to storage phenotypes, like the cytoskeleton composition, low cellular fragility, and enhanced membrane proteostasis that characterize stored βThal(+) RBCs. Overall, it seems that the intrinsic physiology of βThal(+) RBCs benefits them in conditions mimicking a recipient environment, and in the circulation of animal models; findings that warrant validation in clinical trials.