BACKGROUND Platelets play a key role in atherogenesis and thromboembolic complications in patients with type 2 diabetes. METHODS AND RESULTS We prospectively examined the relationship between systemic platelet activation and progression of carotid wall thickness within 1 year in 105 patients with type 2 diabetes. The intima-media thickness (IMT) of the common carotid artery was measured bilat...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Shear-stress is considered to be the first event of platelet aggregation in vivo and platelet adhesion may be enhanced under pathologic conditions (e.g. arterial occlusion). DESIGN AND METHODS We wanted to test the effect of adenosine derivatives on platelet aggregation induced by shear-stress. By increasing platelet cAMP adenosine derivatives inhibit platelet activat...

Elevated numbers of activated platelets circulate in patients with chronic inflammatory diseases, including atherosclerosis and coronary disease. Activated platelets can activate the complement system. Although complement activation is essential for immune responses and removal of spent cells from circulation, it also contributes to inflammation and thrombosis, especially in patients with defec...

P-selectin (CD62P) is an adhesion molecule that mediates the initial attachment of leukocytes to activated platelets and endothelial cells in damaged tissues. We evaluated the role of P-selectin in concanavalin A (Con A)-induced hepatitis, a model characterized by CD4(+) T cell activation and infiltration of the liver. Con A injection induced transient P-selectin expression on hepatic venules a...

Activation of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) mediates oxidative stress-induced cell injury. We tested the hypothesis that PARP contributes to ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) damage of the liver by triggering the mechanisms of microcirculatory failure. Leukocyte- and platelet-endothelial cell interactions as well as sinusoidal perfusion were analyzed by intravital fluorescence microscopy after lo...

Platelet microparticles (PMPs) are small vesicles released from blood platelets upon activation. The procoagulant activity of PMPs has been previously mainly characterized by their ability to bind coagulation factors VIII and Va in reconstructed systems. It can be supposed that PMPs can contribute to the development of thrombotic complications in the pathologic states associated with the increa...

This study was to determine the impact of adjunctive Buchang Naoxintong Jiaonang (BNJ) to clopidogrel on volunteers with the CYP2C19*2 gene mutation accompanied with qi deficiency and blood stasis (QDBS) constitution. Eighteen males with QDBS constitution were selected, who were 6 CYP2C19*1/*1, 6 CYP2C19*1/*2, and 6 CYP2C19*2/*2, and signed informed consent. Results showed that the maximal plat...

• Physiological shear stress promotes megakaryocytic maturation, DNA synthesis, phosphatidylserine exposure and caspase-3 activation. • Shear enhances the production and function of PLPs and Mk-derived microparticles possessing a novel function. In vivo visualization of thrombopoiesis suggests an important role for shear flow in platelet biogenesis. In vitro, shear stress was shown to accelerat...

Hemocompatibility, anti-inflammation and anti-thrombogenicity of acellular synthetic vascular grafts remains a challenge in biomaterials design. Using electrospun polycaprolactone (PCL) fibers as a template, a coating of polypyrrole (PPy) was successfully polymerized onto the fiber surface. The fibers coated with heparin-doped PPy (PPy-HEP) demonstrated better electroactivity, lower surface res...

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by extracellular beta-amyloid plaques and intracellular tau tangles. AD-related pathology is often accompanied by vascular changes. The predominant vascular lesions in AD are cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) and arteriosclerosis. Platelets circulate along the vessel wall responding immediately to vascular injury. The aim of the present study was to exp...