Prevalence of reduced fibrinogen binding to platelets in a population of Thoroughbreds.
Abstract: To measure the frequency and magnitude of reduced fibrinogen binding in a population of horses from a Thoroughbred breeding farm. Methods: 444 Thoroughbred horses, 1 to 27 years old, including 316 females, 72 geldings, and 56 sexually intact males. Methods: Blood was collected from horses into tubes containingacid citrate dextrose adenine, and washed platelets were examined by use of flow cytometry for their ability to bind fibrinogen. Results: Data regarding fibrinogen binding to activated platelets were normally distributed, with nearly identical amounts of variation regardless of sex. In 3 horses, fibrinogen binding to platelets was reduced from 67.6% to 83.4%, compared with normal platelets, which indicated an inability of platelets to aggregate in response to thrombin (0.1 U/mL). Conclusions: Platelet fibrinogen binding of the affected horses identified in this study was characteristic of a reported heritable bleeding disorder in which the reduction in fibrinogen binding correlated with prolonged bleeding times in template bleeding assays. The bleeding disorder is distinct from Glanzmann thrombasthenia, in which platelets fail to bind fibrinogen because of lack of alphallb-beta3 integrin on their surface. The prevalence of affected horses within the small sample population studied here (0.7% [n = 3]) is considerably higher than the prevalence of bleeding disorders within more genetically diverse groups.
Publication Date: 2007-07-04 PubMed ID: 17605606DOI: 10.2460/ajvr.68.7.716Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
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This research studies the presence and extent of reduced fibrinogen binding in a population of Thoroughbred horses, with the conclusion that it is indicative of a hereditary bleeding disorder. This disorder is distinguished from another bleeding disorder called Glanzmann thrombasthenia, and seems to be more prevalent in this specific study group than in more varied groups.
Research Methods
- This study involved 444 Thoroughbred horses, aged between 1 to 27 years, and including 316 females, 72 geldings, and 56 sexually intact males.
- The horses’ blood was collected in tubes containing acid citrate dextrose adenine, which helps to prevent the blood from clotting.
- The researchers then examined the ability of washed platelets in the collected blood to bind to fibrinogen using flow cytometry, a technology that can analyze physical and chemical characteristics of particles in a fluid as it passes through a laser.
Research Findings
- Data about fibrinogen binding to the horses’ activated platelets was normally distributed, showing nearly the same amounts of variation irrespective of the horse’s sex.
- For three of the horses, fibrinogen binding to the platelets was reduced from 67.6% to 83.4%, compared to normal platelets. This suggests the platelets were less able to aggregate (group together), which is usually triggered by thrombin.
- This characteristic of the platelets in the affected horses reveals signs similar to a known inheritable bleeding disorder, particularly as the reduction in fibrinogen binding ties to extended bleeding times in template bleeding assays (tests to measure how long it takes for bleeding to stop).
Conclusions and Significance
- This measured bleeding disorder in the horses is distinct from a condition known as Glanzmann thrombasthenia, which also impairs platelets’ ability to bind fibrinogen, albeit due to a deficiency in alphallb-beta3 integrin on their surface, rather than reduced fibrinogen binding capacity.
- The prevalence of this condition within the studied population (0.7% or 3 of the studied horses) signifies a higher than expected frequency compared to the prevalence of such bleeding disorders in more genetically diverse groups.
Cite This Article
APA
Norris JW, Pratt SM, Hunter JF, Gardner IA, Tablin F.
(2007).
Prevalence of reduced fibrinogen binding to platelets in a population of Thoroughbreds.
Am J Vet Res, 68(7), 716-721.
https://doi.org/10.2460/ajvr.68.7.716 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Anatomy, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Blood Platelet Disorders / blood
- Blood Platelet Disorders / epidemiology
- Blood Platelet Disorders / veterinary
- Blood Platelets / metabolism
- Female
- Fibrinogen / metabolism
- Flow Cytometry
- Horse Diseases / blood
- Horse Diseases / epidemiology
- Horses / blood
- Male
- Platelet Activation
- Prevalence
- Thrombin / metabolism
Citations
This article has been cited 3 times.- Dahlgren AR, Tablin F, Finno CJ. Genetics of equine bleeding disorders. Equine Vet J 2021 Jan;53(1):30-37.
- Norris JW, Pombo M, Shirley E, Blevins G, Tablin F. Association of Factor V Secretion with Protein Kinase B Signaling in Platelets from Horses with Atypical Equine Thrombasthenia. J Vet Intern Med 2015 Sep-Oct;29(5):1387-94.
- Tablin F, Schumacher T, Pombo M, Marion CT, Huang K, Norris JW, Jandrey KE, Kittleson MD. Platelet activation in cats with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. J Vet Intern Med 2014 Mar-Apr;28(2):411-8.
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