Determination of cell membrane permeability coefficients: Comparison of models in the case of oocytes.

Values of cell membranes permeability coefficients for water and molecules of cryoprotective agents (CPAs) are the necessary characteristics for developing physical-mathematical models describing mass transfer processes through cell membranes in order to predict optimal cell cooling rates. We carried out a comparative analysis of the permeability coefficients of mouse oocyte membranes for molecules of water, ethylene glycol (EG), propane-1,2-diol (1,2-PD) and dimethyl sulfoxide (MeSO), determined by applying the classical Kedem-Katchalsky model, which considers only the penetration of non-electrolyte molecules (water and CPA) through the membrane, and the model developed by us, which takes into account the transmembrane transfer of ions and the associated changes in the transmembrane electric potential. We shown that calculations based on the developed modified model provide lower values of the permeability coefficients of the oocyte membrane for water and CPA molecules.

Physical-mathematical Model of Substance Redistribution between the Cell and its Hypertonic Solution Environment of Penetrating Cryoprotectants with Relevance to Membrane Potential.

Background: The redistribution of basic ions between the cell cytoplasm and its surrounding medium due to osmotic action affects transmembrane potential and plasma membrane integrity at all stages of low temperature preservation.

Objective: To develop a physical-mathematical model describing the redistribution of osmotically active solutes between the cell and its hypertonic solutions of penetrating cryoprotectants that enables the calculation of kinetic changes in cell volume, cryoprotectant and ion concentrations, as well as the cell transmembrane potential during cell equilibration with cryoprotectant solutions.

Materials And Methods: The study has modeled the mass transfer process of mouse oocytes upon exposure to 1.