Bioelectrorheological model of the cell. 5. Electrodestruction of cellular membrane in alternating electric field.

Recently proposed analysis of the extensil stress developed in a cellular membrane subjected to an alternating electric field (Pawłowski, P., and M. Fikus, 1993. Bioelectrorheological model of the cell. 4. Analysis of the extensil deformation of the membrane in an alternating field. Biophys. J. 65:535-540) was applied in calculations of extensil stress threshold values, sigma eod], producing experimentally observed electrodestruction of cells within the frequency range of 7 x 10(1) - 3 x 10(5) Hz. It was shown that the susceptibility (sd] = 1/sigma eod]), of the membrane to this process varies with field frequency and depends on the type of cells. Electrodestruction is facilitated in the 10(5)-Hz field. A rheological hypothesis explaining the experimentally observed dependence of membrane stability on electric field frequency was proposed and successfully tested for two other phenomena: electroporation and electrofusion.