New Insights Into The Mystery Of "High Risk Platelets" From Diabetic Donors

Main Category: Diabetes
Also Included In: Obesity / Weight Loss / Fitness
Article Date: 15 May 2009 - 2:00 PDT

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Amid emerging concerns that blood platelets donated for transfusion by individuals with Type 2 diabetes may be unsafe, scientists are reporting the first detailed identification and analysis of a group of abnormal proteins in platelets from diabetic donors. The study could lead to screening tests to detect and monitor these so-called "high risk platelets," the researchers say. Their study is scheduled for the June 5 issue of ACS' Journal of Proteome Research, a monthly publication. About 18 million people in the United States have Type 2 diabetes, and the disease is spreading with the epidemic of obesity.

David Springer and colleagues point out in the new study that thousands of patients receive potentially lifesaving transfusions of platelets each year to treat bleeding from trauma and for a wide range of medical conditions. Scientists have known that abnormal platelets in the blood of diabetics may predispose these individuals to heart disease. It led to concern that platelets from these individuals stored for transfusion may be less effective and even unsafe. However, scientists know little about how diabetic platelets differ from those of healthy people.

The new study identified 122 proteins that differed in the platelets of individuals with diabetes compared to the platelets of non-diabetics. They also found that freshly collected platelets from diabetics show almost as many abnormal changes (more than 100) in protein content as healthy donor platelets stored for up to 5 days. These findings could lead to new tests for detecting and monitoring abnormal platelets to improve the outcome of blood transfusions from both diabetic and healthy individuals, the researchers say.

Source
American Chemical Society