Science, Vol 205, Issue 4409, 932-934
Copyright © 1979 by American Association for the Advancement of Science
Lithium transport across red cell membrane: a cell membrane abnormality in manic-depressive illness
E Dorus,
GN Pandey,
R Shaughnessy,
M Gaviria,
E Val,
S Ericksen,
and
JM Davis
In the families of manic-depressive patients, relatives with a history of affective disorders had a significantly higher ratio of mean red cell lithium to plasma lithium in vitro than relatives with no such history. A genetically controlled abnormality in lithium-sodium transport, the mechanism that determines the lithium ratio, may play a role in the etiology of some forms of affective disorders.