Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, Vol 53, Issue 4 B306-B309, Copyright © 1998 by The Gerontological Society of America
Binding of platelet-activating factor of platelets of ischemic stroke patients
A Adunsky and M Hershkowitz
Department of Geriatric Medicine and Neurological Rehabilitation, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Israel.
Platelet-activating factor (PAF) has been suggested to play an important
role in brain ischemia and stroke. We examined whether binding of PAF to
platelets of patients suffering from ischemic stroke differs in the acute
and subacute stages, and correlated the results with the severity of
neurological presentation. A total of 30 patients with first ever ischemic
stroke was studied. The patients were divided into two groups according to
stroke severity as assessed by the Scandinavian Stroke Scale (SSS).
Binding of PAF to platelets was performed on admission (first
determination) and 3 weeks later (second determination) by labeling with
[3H]PAF. Results of PAF binding were obtained also from 21 healthy age-
and sex-matched volunteers. Binding results shortly after stroke onset
were significantly lower in the severly affected group (analysis of
variance, F=11.0, p<.001). Moreover, only in these patients was there a
change in PAF binding between the first and second determinations (Wilcoxon
signed ranks set, p=.018). A significant correlation was found between PAF
binding and severity of neurologic deficits as assessed by the SSS
(correlation coefficient =.52, p=.01). This result shows evidence of PAF
system involvement in stroke patients. PAF binding to platelets clearly
differs in the acute and subacute stages, and the reduction in the number
of binding sites correlates with severity of nuerologic defecits. We
conclude that PAF binding in platelets may serve as an additional marker of
stroke severity.
