The Bernard-Soulier platelet: II. A comparative study of changes in platelet morphology and cytoskeletal architecture following contact activation.
Platelet adhesion is a critical, early event in hemostasis. It is a complex process which involves platelet sticking, activation, granule release, and a series of morphologic changes which appear to enhance contact. The membrane glycoprotein (GP) Ib, which is thought to play an important role in adhesion, is missing in the Bernard Soulier Syndrome (BSS) and platelets in this syndrome have a structural defect which results in giant size on peripheral smear. Correlative SEM/TEM studies on adherent BSS platelets were used to address two questions: 1) Does the absence of GP Ib in BSS platelets result in abnormalities in the morphologic changes which ordinarily accompany adhesion to formvar? and 2) Is the giantism seen in BSS platelets related to or reflected in abnormalities in organization of the cytoskeletons of adherent platelets?
D001791:Blood Platelet Disorders / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics; D001792:Blood Platelets / Q000166:cytology*; D003599:Cytoskeleton / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006579:Heterozygote; D006801:Humans; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D010974:Platelet Aggregation