Platelet membrane fluidity and platelet membrane lipid pattern in several clinical conditions

Platelet membrane fluidity, platelet membrane cholesterol/phospholipid ratio, platelet membrane individual phospholipids and plasma Lipid composition were evaluated in diabetics, in subjects with vascular atherosclerotic disease (VAD), in VAD subjects with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) and in hypertensives. The platelet membrane fluidity did not distinguish normals from diabetics and normals from hypertensives; this microrheological parameter discriminated instead normals from VAD subjects and normals from VAD subjects with NIDDM. Platelet membrane cholesterol/phospholipid ratio discriminated normals from hypertensives only. Of the platelet membrane individual phospholipids, while the phosphatidylcholine (PC) was increased, the phosphatidylserine (PS) was reduced in diabetics; no significant difference was evident between normals and VAD subjects with and without NIDDM, while in hypertensives the PC was significantly increased. In each group of patients the study of correlations between platelet membrane fluidity and platelet membrane Lipid pattern, as well as that between platelet membrane fluidity and plasma lipid composition, shows contrasting results.