In previous studies (Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 144, 779-786 (1987); Prog. Clin. Biol. Res. 292, 65-75 (1989)), we showed that inositol hexaphosphate (IHP), when added to erythrocyte membrane ghosts in the range 0.6-2.5 mM, caused a large disruption of skeletal protein-protein interactions as monitored by electron paramagnetic resonance techniques. IHP incorporated into intact cells by an osmotic-pulse method (J. Cell. Physiol. 129, 221-229 (1986)) leads to cells with markedly decreased oxygen affinity. Exposure of the red cells to higher levels of IHP during the osmotic pulse leads to less lysis and more normal cellular indices after healing of the transiently-disrupted membrane (J. Lab. Clin. Med. 113, 58-66 (1989)). In order to determine what effect higher levels of IHP had on skeletal proteins and bilayer lipids of membrane ghosts, spin labeling studies were performed. The main findings were: (a) There was a concentration-dependent alteration in skeletal protein interactions. At concentrations greater than 25 mM IHP, the effectiveness of IHP to disrupt skeletal protein interactions was diminished. (b) No apparent alteration of the motion or order of phospholipids or the lipid water interface of intact cells into which IHP was incorporated occurred, suggesting that higher levels of IHP do not alter the physical state of the lipid bilayer.