Platelet arachidonate cascade of migraineurs in the interictal phase

Morphological and functional alterations of platelets in migraineurs may be linked to the development of migraine. We examined the eicosanoid synthesis of platelets of untreated female migraineurs in a headache-free period and compared it to that of age- and blood group-matched healthy female volunteers. In the platelets of headache-free migraineurs significantly less amounts of anti-aggregatory prostaglandin D2 and prostacyclin, as well as of 12-L-hydroxy-5,8,10-heptadecatrienoic acid (a potent endogenous inducer of endothelial prostacyclin production) were produced, while the synthesis of platelet aggregatory thromboxane did not differ when compared to that of healthy women. These results suggest that the platelet eicosanoids of migraineurs in the headache-free period might promote the development of cellular, vascular and neurological events inducing headache.