Abstract
Recent research both on the morphological and biochemical level has greatly advanced our knowledge about the platelet and its interaction with the vessel wall and plasmatic factors. The platelet membrane makes platelets unique in their properties to adhere to other surfaces (adhesion) and to each other (aggregation), the main basis for their functional task: to prevent and to stop bleeding. This basic function is governed by vessel wall factors (eg. collagen) representing the initial stimulus, by plasmatic factors such as von Willebrand factor and fibrinogen, by platelet membrane receptors, of which some are identified, and of platelet membrane phospholipids providing the arachidonic acid necessary for thromboxane synthesis and further by compounds contained in the platelet cytosol (cyclooxygenase, thromboxane synthetase and the cyclic AMP system), and in the granules (eg. ADP), which together are necessary for the release reaction and thus for providing the physiological aggregating stimulus, ADP. The release process can also be imitated by other biological compounds including thrombin, thus linking coagulation and platelet function.
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