Endogenous serotonin in human blood platelets: factors that may influence reference values

Area of Science:

• Hematology
• Biochemistry
• Clinical Chemistry

Background:

• Endogenous serotonin in human platelets is a widely used indicator of platelet activation.
• Previous studies show significant variability in platelet serotonin levels, hindering comparability.
• This variability is likely due to a lack of standardization in experimental procedures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate factors influencing endogenous platelet serotonin content.
• To establish standardized conditions for measuring platelet serotonin.
• To assess the impact of centrifugation, donor age, sex, and platelet count on serotonin levels.

Main Methods:

• Studied over 200 blood donors to identify factors affecting platelet serotonin.
• Analyzed the influence of centrifugation g-force, donor age and sex, platelet count, and mean platelet volume.
• Utilized a standardized centrifugation procedure (2700 g min).

Main Results:

• Centrifugation force was the most significant factor influencing platelet serotonin levels.
• Donor age and sex, platelet count, and mean platelet volume also affected normal serotonin values.
• Statistically significant differences in serotonin levels were observed between different age and sex groups.

Conclusions:

• Standardization of the isolation procedure, particularly centrifugation force, is essential for accurate measurement of endogenous platelet serotonin.
• Age and sex are significant factors that must be considered in studies involving platelet serotonin.
• Endogenous platelet serotonin exhibits intrapersonal stability over time, suggesting reliability when standardized.