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Biomedical subjects

T W Chow

Publications and source records attributed to T W Chow.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Role of the membrane concanavalin A binding site in platelet-fibrin interactions.

Concanavalin A was employed to study the role of platelet membrane glycoproteins in platelet-fibrin interactions during clot formation. A rheological technique was used to study the interactions, measuring the clot rigidity and platelet contractile force simultaneously during the formation of network structure. Concanavalin A lowered the clot rigidity and contractile force of a platelet-rich plasma clot by a small extent. Plasma glycoproteins probably compete with platelet membranes for concanavalin A binding in platelet-rich plasma. Both native concanavalin A (tetrameric) and succinyl concanavalin A (dimeric) lowered the clot rigidity and contractile force of a washed platelet-fibrin clot dramatically, almost down to those values found for fibrin clots. Inhibition studies with alpha-methyl-D-mannoside indicated that the concanavalin A effects were specific for the concanavalin A binding capacity to platelets. The effects of native concanavalin A on platelet-fibrin clots were only partially reversible, while the succinyl concanavalin A effects were completely reversible. The observed concanavalin A effects are probably mainly due to concanavalin A binding to platelet membrane glycoproteins. The concanavalin A binding site appears to play an important role in the fibrin binding to platelets.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed1983

Importance of plasma fibronectin in determining PFP and PRP clot mechanical properties.

Plasma fibronectin has been shown to be incorporated into fibrin clots. The serum concentration of fibronectin is 20-50% lower than the plasma concentration (1). Grinnell and Feld, using an indirect immunofluorescence analysis on blood clots prepared on plastic strata, demonstrated that the fibrin-platelet meshwork was covered with a uniform coating of fibronectin (2). Fibronectin binds to fibrin by either non-covalent attachment or covalent crosslinking. The covalent crosslinking of fibronectin to the fibrin alpha-chain is via an epsilon-(gamma-glutamyl)lysine linkage, mediated by Factor XIIIa (3). Each fibronectin molecule has two such binding sites. Thus it appears that fibronectin may play a role in blood coagulation. It has been suggested that the mechanical properties of fibrin clots may be enhanced by the presence of fibronectin crosslinking (2). Kamykowski, et al. (4) have shown that the shear modulus of a ligated clot formed from purified fibrinogen can be either increased or decreased if fibronectin is present, depending on the ionic strength and the pH during network formation. Although fibronectin is associated with the network structure in plasma clots, the mechanical role of this fibronectin has not been established. In this study we examine quantitatively the effect of plasma fibronectin on the dynamic rigidity moduli of fibrin clots formed from platelet free plasma (PFP), as well as from platelet rich plasma (PRP).

Biophysical Phenomena↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Epinephrine and shear stress synergistically induce platelet aggregation via a mechanism that partially bypasses VWF-GP IB interactions.

Elevated shear stress levels in pathologically stenosed vessels induce platelet activation and aggregation, and may play a role in the pathogenesis of arterial disease. Increased plasma catecholamine concentrations have also been implicated in the onset of acute coronary ischemic syndromes. This study was designed to examine the synergistic interaction of shear stress and epinephrine in the activation of platelets. Platelets (in PRP) sheared at 60 dyn/cm2 showed little or no aggregation unless pretreated with epinephrine. Pretreatment with 250 nM epinephrine followed by shear at 60 dyn/cm2 induced > 60% platelet aggregation. The specific alpha 2-adrenergic receptor antagonist yohimbine inhibited the synergistic aggregation, as did the ADP scavenging system phosphocreatine/creatine phosphokinase, indicating a three-way synergism with ADP. Chemical or monoclonal antibody blockade of von Willebrand factor (vWF) interactions with either platelet glycoprotein (Gp) Ib or Gp IIb/IIIa completely inhibited platelet aggregation induced by activating levels of shear stress alone. However, the combination of epinephrine and shear stress induced platelet aggregation that was blocked by 10E5, a monoclonal antibody that inhibits vWF binding to Gp IIb/IIIa, but not by aurin tricarboxylic acid or the monoclonal antibody 6D1, both of which inhibit vWF binding to Gp Ib. Synergistic platelet aggregation in response to epinephrine and shear stress was observed in washed platelets, platelet-rich plasma and whole blood in vitro, and also ex vivo following exercise to elevate endogenous levels of catecholamines. These results indicate that epinephrine synergizes with shear stress to induce platelet aggregation. This synergistic response requires functional Gp IIb/IIIa complexes, but is at least partially independent of vWF-Gp Ib interactions.

Calcium↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Shear stress-induced binding of von Willebrand factor to platelets.

Shear stress-induced platelet aggregation requires von Willebrand factor (vWF), platelet glycoprotein (GP) Ib, GPIIb-IIIa, Ca2+, and adenosine diphosphate (ADP). Recent reports using vWF labeled with either 125I or fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) have demonstrated that in shear-fields, vWF binds to both GPIb and GPIIb-IIIa. The sequence of the vWF finding to the two platelet receptors has not been precisely determined in these reports. In this study, a flow cytometry technique using a primary anti-vWF antibody and a secondary FITC IgG antibody was used to measure shear stress-induced vWF binding to platelets. Washed normal platelets suspended at 50,000/microliters with purified large vWF multimers were exposed to laminar shear stresses of 15 to 120 dynes/cm2 for 30 sec. At this low platelet count, little or no aggregation occurred in the shear fields. A significant increase in post-shear vWF-positive platelets was consistently observed. Experiments with platelets from normal and severe von Willebrand's disease (vWD) (which lack plasma and platelet alpha-granule vWF) demonstrated that exogenous vWF predominately contributed to the platelet-vWF binding. Blockade of platelet GPIb with the monoclonal anti-GPIb antibody, 6D1, completely inhibited shear stress-induced platelet-vWF attachment. In contrast, blockade of GPIIb-IIIa with monoclonal anti-GPIIb-IIIa antibodies, 10E5, or c7E3, or with the GPIIb-IIIa-blocking tetrapeptide, RGDS had little or no inhibitory effect on platelet-vWF binding. These data demonstrate that the binding of vWF to GPIb is likely to be the initial shear-induced platelet-ligand binding event.

Blood Platelets↗