[Platelet glycosaminoglycans in paraproteinemic hemoblastoses].

The content and composition of platelet glycosaminoglycans (GAG) were studied in 24 patients with paraproteinemic hemoblastoses (22 patients with myelomic disease and 2 with Waldenstrom's disease). According to the GAG levels, the patients were divided into 2 groups: 1) 6 patients with its higher levels (181 +/- 8 micrograms of uronic acids per 100 mg of acetone-dried cells) and 2) 18 patients with its close-to-normal levels (129 +/- 4 micrograms per 100 mg of the cells). Marked manifestations of hemorrhagic diathesis were found in 5 patients in Group 1 and in 1 in Group 2. Chondroitin sulfate was demonstrated to prevalent in the platelets of patients with paraproteinemic hemoblastoses, as in those of healthy persons. There was GAG electrophoretic profile depletion due to the reduced number of minor components of non- and low-sulfated GAG in 14 patients. It is suggested that the changes detected in the content and composition of GAG may contribute to platelet dysfunction in these diseases.