Circulating platelet aggregates induced by somatostatin in insulin-dependent diabetic subjects

The present study was undertaken to reevaluate the influence of somatostatin on platelet function in insulin-dependent diabetics and in normal subjects. In in vivo studies, nine insulin-requiring diabetics were infused with cyclic somatostatin (250 microgram/hour) for 120 minutes or with saline, in randomized order. This dose of somatostatin, sufficient to depress the basal concentrations of plasma glucose, glucagon and C-peptide, resulted in no significant change of platelet aggregation response to either ADP or collagen. By contrast, a progressive and significant reduction of platelet aggregation response to ADP was found during saline infusion. A similar pattern of response was seen in normal subjects. In all diabetics, but not in normals, somatostatin induced the appearance of circulating platelet aggregates. In in vitro studies, somatostatin augmented the aggregation response to epinephrine in both normals and diabetics. In conclusion, somatostatin counteracts the decrease of platelet aggregation response to ADP seen in saline studies, induces the appearance of platelet aggregates in diabetics and potentiates the aggregation response to epinephrine (in vitro) in both normals and diabetics. These actions of somatostatin suggest some aggregating capacity of the peptide in man.