Mechanical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA.
Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA.
Nat Commun. 2019 Mar 13;10(1):1204. doi: 10.1038/s41467-019-09150-9.
Platelets contract forcefully after their activation, contributing to the strength and stability of platelet aggregates and fibrin clots during blood coagulation. Viscoelastic approaches can be used to assess platelet-induced clot strengthening, but they require thrombin and fibrin generation and are unable to measure platelet forces directly. Here, we report a rapid, microfluidic approach for measuring the contractile force of platelet aggregates for the detection of platelet dysfunction. We find that platelet forces are significantly reduced when blood samples are treated with inhibitors of myosin, GPIb-IX-V, integrin αβ P2Y, or thromboxane generation. Clinically, we find that platelet forces are measurably lower in cardiology patients taking aspirin. We also find that measuring platelet forces can identify Emergency Department trauma patients who subsequently require blood transfusions. Together, these findings indicate that microfluidic quantification of platelet forces may be a rapid and useful approach for monitoring both antiplatelet therapy and traumatic bleeding risk.
血小板在激活后会强力收缩，有助于在血液凝固过程中增强血小板聚集物和纤维蛋白凝块的强度和稳定性。黏弹性方法可用于评估血小板诱导的凝块强化，但这些方法需要凝血酶和纤维蛋白的生成，并且无法直接测量血小板的力。在这里，我们报告了一种快速的微流控方法，用于测量血小板聚集物的收缩力，以检测血小板功能障碍。我们发现，当用肌球蛋白、GPIb-IX-V、整合素 αβ P2Y 或血栓烷生成抑制剂处理血液样本时，血小板的力显著降低。临床上，我们发现正在服用阿司匹林的心脏病患者的血小板力可测量地降低。我们还发现，测量血小板力可以识别随后需要输血的急诊创伤患者。总之，这些发现表明，微流控血小板力的定量可能是一种快速且有用的方法，可用于监测抗血小板治疗和创伤性出血风险。
