To date, there has been no ideal method for blood platelet isolation which allows one to obtain a preparation devoid of contaminations, reflecting the activation status and morphological features of circulating platelets. To address these requirements, we have developed a method which combines the continuous density gradient centrifugation with washing from PGI-supplemented platelet-rich plasma (PRP). We have assessed the degree of erythrocyte and leukocyte contamination, recovery of platelets, morphological features, activation status, and reactivity of isolated platelets. Using our protocol, we were able to get a preparation free from contaminations, representing well the platelet population prior to the isolation in terms of size and activity. Besides this, we have obtained approximately 2 times more platelets from the same volume of blood compared to the most widely used method. From 10 ml of whole citrated blood we were able to get on average 2.7 mg of platelet-derived protein. The method of platelet isolation presented in this paper can be successfully applied to tests requiring very pure platelets, reflecting the circulating platelet state, from a small volume of blood.

The protective effects of carvedilol on heart function observed in the acute phase of experimental autoimmune myocarditis seem to be associated with its ability to decrease MMP-2 activity and subsequently prevent degradation of myofilaments and release of troponin I while not related to suppression of inflammation.

Background. Sepsis is one of the most common causes of hospitalization and it is characterized by a high mortality rate in spite of the great progress in diagnosis and treatment achieved in recent years. Early diagnosis of sepsis is one of the most important elements of effective treatment. The clinical symptoms are not specific and biomarkers are considered to be useful tools in sepsis diagnostics.

No abstract