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Als Hämostase bezeichnet man die Gesamtheit der Reaktionen, die zu einer effektiven Blutgerinnung beitragen. Sie lässt sich in die primäre (thrombozytäre) Hämostase, in die sekundäre (plasmatische) Hämostase und in das Fibrinolysesystem einteilen. Thrombozyten, oder auch Plättchen genannt, spielen hierbei eine entscheidende Rolle. Sie binden an die durch eine Verletzung einer Blutgefäßwand freigelegten Faktoren, werden so aktiviert und aggregieren mit weiteren Thrombozyten, wodurch ein Thrombus entsteht, der die Verletzung verschließt. Zudem besitzen Thrombozyten Immunokompetenz und können mit anderen Immunzellen interagieren, über Rezeptoren Pathogene erkennen und sie direkt angreifen. Einer dieser Pathogene ist der opportunistische Pilz Aspergillus fumigatus. Dieser bildet im Verlauf seines Lebenszyklus 2,5 -3 µm kleine Konidien aus, die mit dem Wind verbreitet werden und bis tief in die Alveolen der menschlichen Lunge eingeatmet werden können. Während diese Konidien im gesunden Menschen durch das Immunsystem und andere Abwehrmechanismen eliminiert werden, können sie im immunsupprimierten Patienten, z. B. bei Patienten nach einer hämatopoietischen Stammzelltransplantation, auskeimen und verschiedene Krankheiten, sogenannte Aspergillosen, auslösen mit der Invasiven Aspergillose (IA) als schwerwiegendste Form. Diese ist assoziiert mit Gewebezerstörungen, Blutungen und Thrombenbildung am Ort der Infektion. Diese Komplikationen könnten auf einer überhöhten Immunantwort des Wirtes, auf dem mechanischen Eindringen des Pilzes in das Gewebe und die Blutgefäße oder auf einer Änderung der lokalen Hämostase durch sezernierte hydrolytische Enzyme (Proteasen) oder Sekundärmetabolite von A. fumigatus beruhen.
Um diese Änderung der Hämostase im Verlauf einer IA zu analysieren, wurde der Einfluss von Morphologien (Konidien, geschwollene Konidien, Keimschläuche und Hyphen), deren Überstände, sowie von proteolytisch aktivem Überstand und von verschiedenen Sekundärmetaboliten von A. fumigatus auf die sekundäre Hämostase und die Aggregation und Aktivität von humanen Thrombozyten untersucht. Bei der Analyse der sekundären Hämostase konnte für keinen dieser eingesetzten Effektoren ein Einfluss festgestellt werden. Bei der Analyse der primären Hämostase und dem Einsatz von Morphologien und ihrer Überstände konnte für Hyphen und ihren ankonzentrierten Überstand eine aggregationssteigernde Wirkung auf Thrombozyten beobachtet werden, die möglicherweise auf Bestandteile der Zellwand von A. fumigatus, wie z. B. β-Galactosaminogalactan (GAG) zurückzuführen ist. Proteolytisch aktiver Überstand führte zu einer Aktivierung der Thrombozyten, die zum Teil auf die PrtT-abhängige proteolytische Spaltung und damit die Aktivierung der Thrombinrezeptoren PAR1 und/oder PAR4 auf der Thrombozytenoberfläche, zum Teil aber auch auf GAG zurückzuführen sein kann. Von den hier verwendeten Mykotoxinen Gliotoxin, Fumagillin, Citrinin, Verruculogen und Deoxynivalenol konnte für Gliotoxin ein negativer Einfluss auf die Thrombozytenaktivität nachgewiesen werden. Dieses Toxin inhibierte die Aggregation und die Aktivität der Thrombozyten, möglicherweise durch die Bildung von Disulfid-Brückenbindungen oder auch durch die Bildung von reaktiven Sauerstoffspezies. Zudem wurde im Verlauf dieser Arbeit eine direkte Interaktion von Gliotoxin mit den ADP-Rezeptoren P2Y1 und P2Y12 sowie mit dem Integrin αIIbβ3 postuliert, die so zwar nicht bestätigt, aber auch nicht vollständig wiederlegt werden konnte.
Die hier dargestellten Ergebnisse zeigen deutlich zwei Wirkungen von A. fumigatus auf humane Thrombozyten: zum einen eine Aktivierung oder auch verstärkte Aggregation durch sezernierte Proteasen oder Zellwandbestandteile, zum anderen eine Hemmung durch Gliotoxin, was die bei einer IA beobachtete Thrombenbildung sowie die Blutungen erklären kann. Die Interaktion der aktivierten Thrombozyten mit den Zellen des Immunsystems sowie die zytotoxischen Eigenschaften von Gliotoxin könnten zudem für die beobachtete Gewebezerstörung verantwortlich sein. Dennoch ist weitere Forschung in diesem Gebiet unabdingbar, um die pathophysiologische Änderung der lokalen Hämostase durch A. fumigatus und seine Wirkung auf humane Thrombozyten besser zu verstehen und so eine schnellere Erkennung und Behandlung von Aspergillosen zu ermöglichen.
Divalent cations are important second messengers triggering various signal transduction events in platelets. Whereas calcium channel blockers have an established antithrombotic effect and the regulation of Ca2+ homeostasis has been elucidated in platelets, the molecular regulation of Mg2+ and Zn2+ homeostasis has not been investigated so far.
In the first part of the thesis, the role of -type serine-threonine kinase linked to transient receptor potential cation channel, subfamily M, member 7 (TRPM7) in platelets was investigated. Using Trpm7R/R mice with a point mutation deleting the kinase activity, we showed that the TRPM7 kinase regulates platelet activation via immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif (ITAM), hem(ITAM) and protease-activated receptor (PAR) signaling routes. Furthermore, Trpm7R/R mice were protected from in vivo thrombosis and stroke, thus establishing TRPM7 kinase as a promising anti-thrombotic target.
In the second part of the thesis, the role of TRPM7 channel in a megakaryocyte (MK) and platelet-specific knockout mouse, Trpm7fl/fl-Pf4Cre, was investigated. Here, we observed that depending on the type of stimulation, Trpm7fl/fl-Pf4Cre platelets showed either enhanced or inhibited responses. Although Trpm7fl/fl-Pf4Cre mice were thrombocytopenic, no differences to wildtype mice were observed in models of in vivo thrombosis and stroke. The above two studies highlight that inhibition of TRPM7 kinase but not the channel itself (in MKs and platelets) may be a promising anti-thrombotic strategy.
Besides TRPM7, we investigated the role of magnesium transporter 1 (MAGT1) in platelet Mg2+ homeostasis and found that MAGT1 primarily regulates receptor-operated calcium entry (ROCE) in platelets specifically upon GPVI activation. This physiological crosstalk is triggered by protein kinase C (PKC) isoforms. Platelets from Magt1-/y mice hyper-reacted to GPVI and thromboxane A2 (TXA2) receptor stimulation in vitro. Consequently, Magt1-/y platelets were found to be pro-thrombotic in disease models of thrombosis and stroke.
To compare platelet ITAM-signaling to the immune system, we further investigated the role of MAGT1 in T and B cells. We described the primary role of MAGT1 in mice under pathogen-free conditions. Magt1-/y B cells showed dysregulated Mg2+ and Ca2+ homeostasis upon B-cell receptor activation, thereby altering Syk, LAT, phospholipase C (PLC)2 and PKC phosphorylation. In contrast to human MAGT1-deficient T cells, development and effector functions of mouse Magt1-/y T cells showed no alterations.
Finally, in the last part of the thesis, we described methods to measure intracellular free zinc [Zn2+]i in human and mouse platelets with storage pool disease (SPD). We propose to measure the [Zn2+]i status in SPD platelets as a relatively easy diagnostic to screen platelet granule abnormalities.
Platelet activation and aggregation at sites of vascular injury is critical to prevent excessive blood loss, but may also lead to life-threatening ischemic diseases, such as myocardial infarction and stroke. Extracellular agonists induce platelet activation by stimulation of platelet membrane receptors. Signal transduction results in reorganization of the cytoskeleton, shape change, platelet adhesion and aggregation, cumulating in thrombus formation. Several Rho GTPases, including Rac1, Cdc42 and RhoA, are essential mediators of subsequent intracellular transduction of ITAM- and GPCR-signaling. Therefore, inhibition or knockout can result in severely defective platelet signaling.
Mice with platelet specific Rac1-deficiency are protected from arterial thrombosis. This benefit highlights further investigation of Rac1-specific functions and its potential as a new pharmacological target for prevention of cardiovascular diseases. Two newly developed synthetic compounds, NSC23766 and EHT1864, were proposed to provide highly specific inhibition of Rac1 activity, but both drugs have never been tested in Rac1-deficient cell systems to rule out potential Rac1-independent effects.
This study revealed significant off-target effects of NSC23766 and EHT1864 that occurred in a dose-dependent fashion in both wild-type and Rac1-deficient platelets. Both inhibitors individually affected resting platelets after treatment, either by altering membrane protein expression (NSC23766) or by a marked decrease of platelet viability (EHT1864). Platelet apoptosis could be confirmed by enhanced levels of phosphatidylserine exposure and decreased mitochondrial membrane potential. Phosphorylation studies of the major effector proteins of Rac1 revealed that NSC23766 and EHT1864 abolish PAK1/PAK2 activation independently of Rac1 in wild-type and knockout platelets, which may contribute to the observed off-target effects.
Additionally, this study demonstrated the involvement of Rac1 in G protein-coupled receptor-mediated platelet activation and GPIb-induced signaling. Furthermore, the data revealed that Rac1 is dispensable in the process of integrin IIb 3-mediated clot retraction.
This study unveiled that new pharmacological approaches in antithrombotic therapy with Rac1 as molecular target have to be designed carefully in order to obtain high specificity and minimize potential off-target effects.
Die erfolgreiche therapeutische Beeinflussung pathophysiologischer Prozesse im Herzen nach myokardialem Infarkt stellt nicht zuletzt durch die steigenden Fallzahlen in der westlichen Welt und die vergleichsweise hohe Mortalität eine Herausforderung an Forschung und Entwicklung dar. In der vorliegenden Arbeit werden verschiedene therapeutische Strategien in klinisch relevanten Mausmodellen des Myokardinfarkts und des Ischämie-Reperfusions-Schadens getestet.
Zunächst wird untersucht, ob sich der Einsatz des NFκB-aktivierenden Zytokins TWEAK, welches weitreichende Funktionen in physiologischen Prozessen wie Wundheilung und Entzündung besitzt, als eine mögliche Therapiestrategie eignet. Die Expression von TWEAK wird nach myokardialem Infarkt stark im Herzgewebe induziert. Das gleiche gilt für den Rezeptor von TWEAK, Fn14, der vor allem auf kardialen Fibroblasten exprimiert wird. Daher wird angenommen, dass das TWEAK-Fn14-System am kardialen Remodelling und der Wundheilung im infarzierten Herzen beteiligt sein kann.
Eine rekombinante Variante von TWEAK - HSA-Flag-TWEAK - wird im Mausmodell des Myokardinfarkts getestet. Überraschenderweise zeigt sich hierbei, dass die therapeutische Behandlung von infarzierten Versuchstieren mit diesem Protein die Mortalität im Vergleich zu Placebo-behandelten Mäusen signifikant erhöht. Dies geht mit einem vermehrten Auftreten an linksventrikulären Rupturen einher, ohne dass Defekte im kardialen Remodelling oder eine erhöhte Apoptoserate im Herzen festgestellt werden können. HSA-Flag-TWEAK bewirkt eine Erhöhung der Gewebekonzentrationen an verschiedenen pro-inflammatorischen Zytokinen (IFN-γ, IL-5, IL-12, GITR, MCP-1/-5 und RANTES) und das vermehrte Einwandern von Immunzellen in das Myokard. Hierbei ist insbesondere die stark erhöhte Infiltration an neutrophilen Granulozyten auffällig. Ein kausaler Zusammenhang zwischen diesen Immunzellen und den auftretenden kardialen Rupturen kann durch die Depletion der Neutrophilen gezeigt werden: Nach der systemischen Applikation eines Ly6G-depletierenden Antikörpers ist das Auftreten von kardialen Rupturen nach TWEAK-Gabe vergleichbar mit der Placebo-behandelten Infarktgruppe. Die Tatsache, dass die Mortalität dennoch erhöht ist, deutet auf weitere negative Effekte durch TWEAK hin. Diese Ergebnisse legen die Vermutung nahe, dass eine Hemmung der TWEAK-Fn14-Achse positive Effekte auf die Wundheilung nach Herzinfarkt bewirken könnte.
Als zweite Therapiestrategie wird die pharmakologische Beeinflussung verschiedener Blutplättchen-spezifischer Zielstrukturen untersucht, um das Auftreten von Mikrothromben nach Myokardinfarkt zu reduzieren. Eine Hemmung über das Blutplättchen-Glykoprotein GPVI bewirkt in dem hier eingesetzten Mausmodell der kardialen Ischämie-Reperfusion eine signifikant verbesserte Mikrozirkulation sowie verringerte Infarktgrößen. GPVI stellt somit ein vielversprechendes Ziel für eine blutplättchenhemmende Therapie nach Myokardinfarkt dar.
Zusammengefasst werden in der vorliegenden Arbeit verschiedene neuartige Therapieoptionen untersucht, die die Auswirkungen ischämischer Erkrankungen des Herzens beeinflussen können. Die Ergebnisse besitzen daher das Potenzial, zur Entwicklung neuer Therapien nach Myokardinfarkt beizutragen.
Platelets are anucleated cell fragments derived from megakaryocytes. They play a fundamental role in hemostasis, but there is rising evidence that they are also involved in immunological processes. Despite absence of a nucleus, human platelets are capable of de novo protein synthesis and contain a fully functional proteasome system, which is, in nucleated cells, involved in processes like cell cycle progression or apoptosis by its ability of protein degradation. The physiological significance of the proteasome system in human platelets is not yet fully understood and subject of ongoing research.
Therefore, this study was conducted with the intention to outline the role of the proteasome system for functional characteristics of human platelets. For experimentation, citrated whole blood from healthy donors was obtained and preincubated with proteasome inhibitors. In addition to the commonly used bortezomib, the potent and selective proteasome inhibitor carfilzomib was selected as a second inhibitor to rule out agent-specific effects and to confirm that observed changes are related to proteasome inhibition.
Irreversibly induced platelet activation and aggregation were not affected by proteasome blockade with bortezomib up to 24 hours. Conversely, proteasome inhibition led to enhanced threshold aggregation and agglutination up to 25 %, accompanied by partial alleviation of induced VASP phosphorylation of approximately 10-15 %. Expression of different receptors were almost unaffected. Instead, a significant increase of PP2A activity was observable in platelets after proteasome blockade, accompanied by facilitated platelet adhesion to coated surfaces in static experiments or flow chamber experiments.
Carfilzomib, used for the first time in functional experimentation with human platelets in vitro, led to a dose-dependent decrease of proteasome activity with accumulation of poly ubiquitylated proteins. Like bortezomib, carfilzomib treatment resulted in enhanced threshold aggregation with attenuated VASP phosphorylation.
As the main conclusion of this thesis, proteasome inhibition enhances the responsiveness of human platelets, provided by an alleviation of platelet inhibitory pathways and by an additional increase of PP2A activity, resulting in facilitated platelet adhesion under static and flow conditions. The proteasome system appears to be involved in the promotion of inhibitory counterregulation in platelets. The potential of proteasome inhibitors for triggering thromboembolic adverse events in patients must be clarified in further studies, in addition to their possible use for targeting platelet function to improve the hemostatic reactivity of platelets.
Function and regulation of phospholipase D in blood platelets: in vitro and in vivo studies in mice
(2014)
Summary
Platelet activation and aggregation are crucial for primary hemostasis but can also result in occlusive thrombus formation. Agonist induced platelet activation involves different signaling pathways leading to the activation of phospholipases (PL) which produce second messengers. While the role of PLCs in platelet activation is well established, less is known about the relevance of PLDs. In the current study, the function and regulation of PLD in platelets was investigated using genetic and pharmacological approaches.
In the first part of this thesis, adhesion, activation and aggregation of platelets from mice lacking PLD2 or both PLD1 and PLD2 were analyzed in vitro and in vivo. While the absence of PLD2 resulted in slightly reduced PLD activity in platelets, it had no detectable effect on the platelet function in vitro and in vivo. However, the combined deficiency of both PLD isoforms resulted in defective alpha-granule release and protection in a model of ferric chloride induced arteriolar thrombosis, effects that were not observed in mice lacking only one PLD isoform. These results revealed, for the first time, redundant roles of PLD1 and PLD2 in platelet alpha-granule secretion and indicate that this may be relevant for pathological thrombus formation. Thus, PLD might represent a promising target for antithrombotic therapy.
Thus, this hypothesis was tested more directly in the second part of this thesis. The effects of pharmacological inhibition of PLD activity on hemostasis, thrombosis and thrombo-inflammatory brain infarction in mice were assessed. Treatment of platelets with the reversible, small molecule PLD inhibitor 5-Fluoro-2-indolyl des-chlorohalopemide (FIPI) led to a specific blockade of PLD activity that was associated with reduced -granule release and integrin activation. Mice that received FIPI at a dose of 3 mg/kg displayed reduced occlusive thrombus formation upon chemical injury of carotid arteries or mesenterial arterioles. Similarly, FIPI-treated mice had smaller infarct sizes and significantly better motor and neurological function 24 hours after transient middle cerebral artery occlusion. This protective effect was not associated with major intracerebral hemorrhage or prolonged tail bleeding times. Thus, pharmacological PLD inhibition might represent a safe therapeutic strategy to prevent arterial thrombosis or ischemic stroke.
After revealing a central role for PLD in thrombo-inflammation, the regulation of PLD activity in platelets was analyzed in the last part of the thesis. Up to date, most studies made use of inhibitors potentially exerting off-target effects and consequently PLD regulation is discussed controversially. Therefore, PLD activity in mice genetically lacking potential modulators of PLD activity was determined to address these controversies. These studies revealed that PLD is tightly regulated during initial platelet activation. While integrin outside-in signaling and Gi signaling was dispensable for PLD activation, it was found that PLC dependent pathways were relevant for the regulation of PLD enzyme activity.
An increase in cytosolic Ca2+ levels ([Ca2+]i) is a key event that occurs downstream of many signaling cascades in response to an external stimulus and regulates a wide range of cellular processes, including platelet activation. Eukaryotic cells increase their basal [Ca2+]i allowing extracellular Ca2+ influx into the cell, which involves different mechanisms. Store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) is considered the main mechanism of extracellular Ca2+ influx in electrically non-excitable cells and platelets, and comprises an initial Ca2+ depletion from intracellular Ca2+ stores prior to activation of extracellular Ca2+ influx. Although the close relation between Ca2+ release from intracellular stores and extracellular Ca2+ influx was clear, the nature of the signal that linked both events remained elusive until 2005, when Stromal Interaction Molecule 1 (STIM1) was identified as an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Ca2+ sensor essential for inositol (1,4,5)-trisphosphate (IP3)-mediated SOCE in vitro. However, the function of its homologue STIM2 in Ca2+ homeostasis was in general unknown. Therefore, mice lacking STIM2 (Stim2-/-) were generated in this work to study initially STIM2 function in platelets and in cells of the immune system. Stim2-/- mice developed normally in size and weight to adulthood and were fertile. However, for unknown reasons, they started to die spontaneously at the age of 8 weeks. Unexpectedly, Stim2-/- mice did not show relevant differences in platelets, revealing that STIM2 function is not essential in these cells. However, STIM2 seems to be involved in mammary gland development during pregnancy and is essential for mammary gland function during lactation. CD4+ T cells lacking STIM2 showed decreased SOCE. Our data suggest that STIM2 has a very specific function in the immune system and is involved in Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis (EAE) at early stages of the disease progression. Stim2-/- neurons were also defective in SOCE. Surprisingly, our results evidenced that STIM2 participates in mechanisms of neuronal damage after ischemic events in brain. This is the first time that the involvement of SOCE in ischemic neuronal damage has been reported. This finding may serve as a basis for the development of novel neuroprotective agents for the treatment of ischemic stroke, and possibly other neurodegenerative disorders in which disturbances in cellular Ca2+ homeostasis are considered a major pathophysiological component.
Platelets have a key physiological role in haemostasis however, inappropriate thrombus formation can lead to cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial infarction or stroke. Although, such diseases are common worldwide there are comparatively few anti-platelet drugs, and these are associated with an increased risk of bleeding. Platelets also have roles in thrombo-inflammation, immuno-thrombosis and cancer, in part via C-type lectin-like receptor 2 (CLEC-2) and its ligand podoplanin. Although CLEC-2 contributes to these diseases in mice, as well as to thrombus stability, it is unclear whether CLEC-2 has similar roles in humans, particularly as human CLEC-2 (hCLEC-2) cannot be investigated experimentally in vivo.
To investigate hCLEC-2 in vivo, we generated a humanised CLEC-2 mouse (hCLEC-2KI) model, as well as a novel monoclonal antibody, HEL1, that binds to a different site than an existing antibody, AYP1. Using these antibodies, we have provided proof of principle for the use of hCLEC-2KI mice to test potential therapeutics targeting hCLEC-2, and shown for the first time that hCLEC-2 can be immunodepleted, with little effect on haemostasis. However, our results have also suggested that there are species differences in the role of CLEC-2 in arterial thrombosis. We further confirmed this using human blood where blocking CLEC-2 ligand binding had no effect on thrombosis, whereas we confirmed a minor role for mouse CLEC-2 in thrombus stability. We also investigated the effect of blocking CLEC-2 signalling using the Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitor PRN473 on CLEC-2 mediated immuno-thrombosis in a Salmonella typhimurium infection model. However, no effect on thrombosis was observed suggesting that CLEC-2 signalling is not involved.
Overall, our results suggest that there may be differences in the role of human and mouse CLEC-2, at least in arterial thrombosis, which could limit the potential of CLEC-2 as an anti-thrombotic target. However, it appears that the interaction between CLEC-2 and podoplanin is conserved and therefore CLEC-2 could still be a therapeutic target in immuno-thrombosis, thrombo-inflammation and cancer. Furthermore, any potential human specific therapeutics could be investigated in vivo using hCLEC-2KI mice.
A subtly regulated and controlled course of cellular processes is essential for the healthy functioning not only of single cells, but also of organs being constituted thereof. In return, this entails the proper functioning of the whole organism. This implies a complex intra- and inter-cellular communication and signal processing that require equally multi-faceted methods to describe and investigate the underlying processes. Within the scope of this thesis, mathematical modeling of cellular signaling finds its application in the analysis of cellular processes and signaling cascades in different organisms. ...
This work summarizes the results of studies on several major aspects of platelet activation and platelet receptor regulation. Therefore, this thesis is divided into four parts.
Platelet activation and aggregation at sites of vascular injury is critical to prevent excessive blood loss, but may also lead to life-threatening ischemic disease states, such as myocardial infarction and stroke. Agonist-induced elevation in cytosolic Ca2+ concentrations is essential for platelet activation in hemostasis and thrombosis. The principal route of Ca2+ influx in platelets is store-operated calcium entry (SOCE). The calcium sensor molecule stromal interaction molecule 1 (STIM1) regulates SOCE by activating the membrane calcium channel protein Orai1, but the exact mechanisms of this interaction are not fully understood. Using affinity chromatography to screen for STIM1 interacting proteins in platelets, bridging integrator 2 (BIN2), an adapter protein belonging to the family of BAR proteins that is mainly expressed in the hematopoietic system, was identified. Newly generated BIN2 KO mice were viable and fertile but their platelets displayed markedly impaired SOCE in response to thapsigargin (TG) as well as agonists acting on immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif (ITAM) or G protein-coupled receptors. This SOCE defect resulted in impaired (hem)ITAM induced platelet activation, aggregate formation under flow and procoagulant activity. As a consequence, mice lacking BIN2 in platelets were protected from occlusive arterial thrombus formation and thrombo-inflammatory cerebral infarct progression in a model of experimental stroke. These results identify BIN2 as a critical regulator of platelet SOCE in thrombosis and thrombo-inflammatory disease.
Integrin αIIbβ3 plays a central role in the adhesion and aggregation of platelets. Integrin activation requires the transmission of a signal from the small cytoplasmic tails of the α or β
subunit to the large extracellular domains resulting in conformational changes of the extracellular domains to enable ligand binding. It was hypothesized that Hic-5 is a novel regulator of integrin αIIbβ3 activation in mice. As demonstrated in the second part of this thesis, lack of Hic-5 had no detectable effect on platelet integrin activation and function in vitro and in vivo under all tested conditions. These results indicate that Hic-5 is dispensable for integrin αIIbβ3 activation and consequently for arterial thrombosis and hemostasis in mice.
The Rho GTPase family members RhoA and Rac1 play major roles in platelet activation at sites of vascular injury. Little is known about possible redundant functions of these Rho GTPases in regulating platelet function. To investigate functional redundancies of RhoA and Rac1 in platelet production and function, mice with MK- and platelet-specific double- deficiencies in RhoA and Rac1 were generated. RhoA/Rac1 double-deficiency phenocopied the respective single knockouts without any additional effects in the double-knockout animals, demonstrating for the first time a functional non-redundancy of RhoA and Rac1 in platelet function.
Antibodies against platelet glycoproteins (GP) trigger platelet destruction in immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) by binding to Fcγ receptors (FcγRs) on immune cells. However, antibodies against the platelet collagen receptor GPVI exert powerful anti-thrombotic action in vivo by inducing ectodomain shedding of the receptor associated with a transient thrombocytopenia. As shown in the final part of this thesis, blockade or deficiency of the inhibitory FcγRIIB abolished sequestration of anti-GPVI opsonized platelets in the hepatic vasculature and GPVI shedding. This process was mediated by liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSEC), the major FcγRIIB expressing cell type in the body. Furthermore, LSEC FcγRIIB mediated hepatic platelet sequestration and contributed to thrombocytopenia in mice treated with antibodies against αIIbβ3, the major target antigen in human ITP. These results reveal a novel and unexpected function of hepatic FcγRIIB in the processing of antibody-opsonized platelets.