The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, Aflac Cancer Center and Blood Disorders Service, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
Semin Thromb Hemost. 2019 Apr;45(3):285-296. doi: 10.1055/s-0038-1676315. Epub 2018 Dec 19.
In addition to the classical biological and biochemical framework, blood clots can also be considered as active biomaterials composed of dynamically contracting platelets, nascent polymeric fibrin that functions as a matrix scaffold, and entrapped blood cells. As platelets sense, rearrange, and apply forces to the surrounding microenvironment, they dramatically change the material properties of the nascent clot, increasing its stiffness by an order of magnitude. Hence, the mechanical properties of blood clots are intricately tied to the forces applied by individual platelets. Research has also shown that the pathophysiological changes in clot mechanical properties are associated with bleeding and clotting disorders, cancer, stroke, ischemic heart disease, and more. By approaching the study of hemostasis and thrombosis from a biophysical and mechanical perspective, important insights have been made into how the mechanics of clotting and the forces applied by platelets are linked to various diseases. This review will familiarize the reader with a mechanics framework that is contextualized with relevant biology. The review also includes a discussion of relevant tools used to study platelet forces either directly or indirectly, and finally, concludes with a summary of potential links between clotting forces and disease.
除了经典的生物学和生物化学框架外，血栓也可以被视为由动态收缩的血小板、作为基质支架的新生聚合纤维蛋白以及被困的血细胞组成的活性生物材料。当血小板感知、重新排列并对周围微环境施加力时，它们会极大地改变新生血栓的物质特性，使其刚度增加一个数量级。因此，血栓的机械性能与单个血小板施加的力密切相关。研究还表明，血栓机械性能的病理生理学变化与出血和凝血障碍、癌症、中风、缺血性心脏病等有关。通过从生物物理和力学的角度研究止血和血栓形成，人们对凝血的力学和血小板施加的力与各种疾病之间的联系有了重要的认识。这篇综述将使读者熟悉一个与相关生物学相关联的力学框架。该综述还讨论了用于直接或间接研究血小板力的相关工具，最后总结了凝血力与疾病之间的潜在联系。
