P. Tatsidou, A.D Tselepis
Abstract
Platelets play a crucial role in hemostasis and atherothrombosis, while many studies demonstrate that platelets are also involved in inflammation and angiogenesis, while upon their activation platelets secrete many inflammatory and angiogenic factors. Furthermore, recent in vitro studies showed that platelets interact with progenitor CD34+ cells in the arterial wall. Studies have shown that in patients with stable coronary artery disease the number of CD34+ is reduced, while these levels of CD34+ cells are higher in acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Nevertheless, the mechanism that causes this increase or decrease remains under investigation. The purpose of this review is to present all the evidence on the new role of CD34+ progenitor cells and their interaction with platelets in the regeneration of the arterial wall and their contribution to the pathophysiology of cardiovascular disease.
Keywords: platelets, CD34+ progenitor cells, angiogenesis, platelet microparticles, KDR, endothelial cells