[Comparative aspects of the changes in lipid metabolism indicators in lymphocyte and erythrocyte membranes in children with diabetes mellitus].
Lipid metabolism in lymphocytes was compared to that in the blood serum and red blood cells. 50 children aged 7 to 15 years suffering from insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) in the phase of decompensation without ketosis were examined. The patients were treated at hospital. 12 healthy children of the same age made up the control group. The changes in the lipid composition of red blood cells were shown to follow "passively" the changes occurring in the lipid composition of the blood serum. On the contrary, the changes in the lipid composition of lymphocyte membranes in IDDM are of "active" nature and may be caused by the displacement of the metabolic changes in lipid to a new pathological level. The changes in the lipid composition of lymphocyte membranes, seen in the phase of IDDM decompensation are one of the main factors responsible for the lowering of lymphocyte function that determines the formation of immunodeficiency followed by the superaddition of infectious diseases.