Red blood cells: their dual role in thrombus formation

VT Turitto, HJ Weiss - Science, 1980 - science.org
VT Turitto, HJ Weiss
Science, 1980science.org
Red blood cells may have a physical and chemical effect on the interaction between
platelets and blood vessel surfaces. Under flow conditions in which primarily physical effects
prevail, platelet adhesion increases fivefold as hematocrit values increase from 10 to 40
percent but undergoes no further increase from 40 to 70 percent, implying a saturation of the
transport-enhancing capabilities of red cells. For flow conditions in which platelet-surface
reactivity is more dominant, platelet adhesion and thrombus formation increase …
Red blood cells may have a physical and chemical effect on the interaction between platelets and blood vessel surfaces. Under flow conditions in which primarily physical effects prevail, platelet adhesion increases fivefold as hematocrit values increase from 10 to 40 percent but undergoes no further increase from 40 to 70 percent, implying a saturation of the transport-enhancing capabilities of red cells. For flow conditions in which platelet-surface reactivity is more dominant, platelet adhesion and thrombus formation increase monotonically as hematocrit values increase from 10 to 70 percent. Thus red cells may have a significant influence on hemostasis and thrombosis; the nature of the effect is apparently related to the flow conditions.
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