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Summary. Recent in vivo studies have highlighted the dynamic and complex nature of platelet thrombus growth and the requirement for multiple adhesive receptor-ligand interactions in this process. In particular, the importance of von Willebrand factor (VWF) in promoting both primary adhesion and aggregation under high shear conditions is now well established. In general, the efficiency with which platelets adhere and aggregate at sites of vessel wall injury is dependent on the synergistic action of various adhesive and soluble agonist receptors, with the contribution of each of the individual receptors dependent on the prevailing blood flow conditions. In this review, we will discuss the major platelet adhesive interactions regulating platelet thrombus formation under high shear, with specific focus on the VWF (GPIb and integrin a IIb b 3 ) and collagen receptors (GPVI and integrin a 2 b 1 ). We will also discuss the signaling mechanisms utilized by these receptors to induce platelet activation with specific emphasis on the role of cytosolic calcium flux in regulating platelet adhesion dynamics. The role of soluble agonists in promoting thrombus growth will be highlighted and a model to explain the synergistic requirement for adhesive and soluble stimuli for efficient platelet aggregation will be discussed.

IntroductionPlatelet aggregation at sites of vascular injury is essential for the formation of the primary hemostatic plug and also for the development of pathological thrombi at sites of atherosclerotic plaque rupture. The initial contact of platelets with the injured vessel wall (platelet adhesion) is a complex process involving multiple adhesive substrates (von Willebrand factor [vWf], collagen) and receptors on the platelet surface (GPIb/V/IX, integrins α IIb β 3 and α 2 β 1 ) (1). The interaction between matrix-bound vWf and GPIbα on the platelet surface serves primarily to tether platelets to the area of vascular injury (2, 3), particularly under conditions of high shear stress, as a prerequisite step for integrin-mediated cell arrest (4). Whereas the molecular events underlying platelet adhesion under different shear conditions have been well delineated, the mechanism(s) by which platelets in freeflowing blood subsequently adhere to the initial layer of adherent platelets (platelet cohesion or aggregation) under flow have been less clearly defined.The traditional model of platelet aggregation, in which integrin α IIb β 3 was thought to have an exclusive role in mediating platelet-platelet adhesion contacts, has been largely determined from studies using a platelet aggregometer (5). With this method, the addition of a soluble agonist to a stirred platelet suspension induces activation of integrin α IIb β 3, converting it from a low-to a high-affinity receptor capable of binding soluble fibrinogen. The dimeric nature of fibrinogen enables it to cross-link adjacent activated platelets leading to stable platelet aggregation. Studies of platelet aggregation under high shear conditions, using a coneplate viscometer, have demonstrated that plasma vWf becomes the relevant ligand responsible for platelet activation (6). Shear-induced binding of soluble vWf to GPIbα initiates platelet activation independent of the addition of exogenous stimuli. Whereas the vWf-GPIbα interaction is indispensable for the initiation of platelet-platelet adhesion contacts under high shear, irreversible platelet aggregation requires a second adhesive interaction between vWf and integrin α IIb β 3 (7).The molecular events governing the formation of stable adhesion contacts between platelets in suspension have been well delineated; however, the mechanism by In this study we have examined the mechanism of platelet aggregation under physiological flow conditions using an in vitro flow-based platelet aggregation assay and an in vivo rat thrombosis model. Our studies demonstrate an unexpected complexity to the platelet aggregation process in which platelets in flowing blood continuously tether, translocate, and/or detach from the luminal surface of a growing platelet thrombus at both arterial and venous shear rates. Studies of platelets congenitally deficient in von Willebrand factor (vWf) or integrin α IIb β 3 demonstrated a key role for platelet vWf in mediating platelet tethering and translocation, whereas integrin α IIb β 3 mediated cell ...

The directional movement of cells in a gradient of external stimulus is termed chemotaxis and is important in many aspects of development and differentiated cell function. Phophoinositide 3-kinases (PI(3)Ks) are thought to have critical roles within the gradient-sensing machinery of a variety of highly motile cells, such as mammalian phagocytes, allowing these cells to respond quickly and efficiently to shallow gradients of soluble stimuli. Our analysis of mammalian neutrophil migration towards ligands such as fMLP shows that, although PtdIns(3,4)P(2) and PtdIns(3,4,5)P(3) accumulate in a PI(3)Kgamma-dependent fashion at the up-gradient leading-edge, this signal is not required for efficient gradient-sensing and gradient-biased movement. PI(3)Kgamma activity is however, a critical determinant of the proportion of cells that can move, that is, respond chemokinetically, in reaction to fMLP. Furthermore, this dependence of chemokinesis on PI(3)Kgamma activity is context dependent, both with respect to the state of priming of the neutrophils and the type of surface on which they are migrating. We propose this effect of PI(3)Kgamma is through roles in the regulation of some aspects of neutrophil polarization that are relevant to movement, such as integrin-based adhesion and the accumulation of polymerized (F)-actin at the leading-edge.

Short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) have recently attracted attention as potential mediators of the effects of gut microbiota on intestinal inflammation. Some of these effects have been suggested to occur through the direct actions of SCFAs on the GPR43 receptor in neutrophils, though the precise role of this receptor in neutrophil activation is still unclear. We show that mouse bone marrow derived neutrophils (BMNs) can chemotax effectively through polycarbonate filters towards a source of acetate, propionate or butyrate. Moreover, we show that BMNs move with good speed and directionality towards a source of propionate in an EZ-Taxiscan chamber coated with fibrinogen. These effects of SCFAs were mimicked by low concentrations of the synthetic GPR43 agonist phenylacetamide-1 and were abolished in GPR43−/− BMNs. SCFAs and phenylacetamide-1 also elicited GPR43-dependent activation of PKB, p38 and ERK and these responses were sensitive to pertussis toxin, indicating a role for Gi proteins. Phenylacetamide-1 also elicited rapid and transient activation of Rac1/2 GTPases and phosphorylation of ribosomal protein S6. Genetic and pharmacological intervention identified important roles for PI3Kγ, Rac2, p38 and ERK, but not mTOR, in GPR43-dependent chemotaxis. These results identify GPR43 as a bona fide chemotactic receptor for neutrophils in vitro and start to define important elements in its signal transduction pathways.

We have investigated the calcium signaling relationship between the two major platelet adhesion receptors, glycoprotein Ib/V/IX (GPIb/V/IX) and integrin ␣ IIb ␤ 3 , involved in regulating platelet adhesion on von Willebrand factor (vWf) under flow. Our studies demonstrate that GPIb engagement of immobilized vWf elicits a transient calcium spike that may function to promote reversible arrest of translocating platelets. Subsequent integrin ␣ IIb ␤ 3 engagement of vWf promotes sustained calcium oscillations that are essential for the maintenance of irreversible adhesion. GPIb-induced calcium spikes appear distinct from those initiated by integrin ␣ IIb ␤ 3 , in that the former are exclusively mediated through release of intracellular calcium stores via a signaling mechanism independent of PI 3-kinase. In contrast, integrin ␣ IIb ␤ 3 -dependent calcium flux involves a PI 3-kinase-dependent signaling mechanism linked to intracellular calcium mobilization and subsequent transmembrane calcium influx. Studies employing the caged calcium chelator (o-nitrophenyl-EGTA) demonstrate that transient calcium spikes initiate a transient phase of platelet arrest that is converted to irreversible adhesion with the development of sustained oscillatory calcium flux. These studies demonstrate the existence of a dual step calcium signaling mechanism utilized by GPIb and integrin ␣ IIb ␤ 3 that serves to regulate the dynamics of platelet adhesion under flow.

Excessive accumulation of platelets at sites of atherosclerotic plaque rupture leads to the development of arterial thrombi, precipitating clinical events such as the acute coronary syndromes and ischemic stroke. The major platelet adhesion receptor glycoprotein (GP) IIbIIIa (integrin ␣ IIb ␤ 3 ) plays a central role in this process by promoting platelet aggregation and thrombus formation. We demonstrate here a novel mechanism downregulating integrin ␣ IIb ␤ 3 adhesive function, involving platelet factor XIII (FXIII) and calpain, which serves to limit platelet aggregate formation and thrombus growth. This mechanism principally occurs in collagenadherent platelets and is induced by prolonged elevations in cytosolic calcium, leading to dramatic changes in platelet morphology (membrane contraction, fragmentation, and microvesiculation) and a specific reduction in integrin ␣ IIb ␤ 3 adhesive function. Adhesion receptor signal transduction plays a major role in the process by sustaining cytosolic calcium flux necessary for calpain and FXIII activation. Analysis of thrombus formation on a type I fibrillar collagen substrate revealed an important role for FXIII and calpain in limiting platelet recruitment into developing aggregates, thereby leading to reduced thrombus formation. These studies define a previously unidentified role for platelet FXIII and calpain in regulating integrin ␣ IIb ␤ 3 adhesive function. Moreover, they demonstrate the existence of an autoregulatory feedback mechanism that serves to limit excessive platelet accumulation on highly reactive thrombogenic surfaces.

Neutrophils are activated by immunoglobulin G (IgG)-containing immune complexes through receptors that recognize the Fc portion of IgG (FcγRs). Here, we used genetic and pharmacological approaches to define a selective role for the β isoform of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3Kβ) in FcγR-dependent activation of mouse neutrophils by immune complexes of IgG and antigen immobilized on a plate surface. At low concentrations of immune complexes, loss of PI3Kβ alone substantially inhibited the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by neutrophils, whereas at higher doses, similar suppression of ROS production was achieved only by targeting both PI3Kβ and PI3Kδ, suggesting that this pathway displays stimulus strength-dependent redundancy. Activation of PI3Kβ by immune complexes involved cooperation between FcγRs and BLT1, the receptor for the endogenous proinflammatory lipid leukotriene B₄. Coincident activation by a tyrosine kinase-coupled receptor (FcγR) and a heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide-binding protein (G protein)-coupled receptor (BLT1) may provide a rationale for the preferential activation of the β isoform of PI3K. PI3Kβ-deficient mice were highly protected in an FcγR-dependent model of autoantibody-induced skin blistering and were partially protected in an FcγR-dependent model of inflammatory arthritis, whereas combined deficiency of PI3Kβ and PI3Kδ resulted in near-complete protection in the latter case. These results define PI3Kβ as a potential therapeutic target in inflammatory disease.