Image analysis of blood platelets adhesion

Adhesion of blood platelets is one of the major events in haemostatic and thrombotic processes. We studied adhesion of blood platelets on fibrinogen and fibrin dimer sorbed on solid support material (glass, polystyrene). Adhesion was carried on under static and dynamic conditions and measured as percentage of the surface covered with platelets. Within a range of platelet counts in normal and in thrombocytopenic blood we observed a very significant decrease in platelet adhesion on fibrin dimer with bounded active thrombin with decreasing platelet count. Our results show the imperative use of platelet poor blood preparations as control samples in experiments with thrombocytopenic blood. Experiments carried on adhesive surfaces sorbed on polystyrene showed lower relative inaccuracy than on glass. Markedly different behaviour of platelets adhered on the same adhesive surface, which differed only in support material (glass or polystyrene) suggest that adhesion and mainly spreading of platelets depends on physical quality of the surface. While on polystyrene there were no significant differences between fibrin dimer and fibrinogen, adhesion measured on glass support material markedly differed between fibrin dimer and fibrinogen. We compared two methods of thresholding in image analysis of adhered platelets. Results obtained by image analysis of spreaded platelets showed higher relative inaccuracy than results obtained by image analysis of platelets centres and aggregates.