State of the art in cerebral venous sinus thrombosis animal models

Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) is an uncommon venous thromboembolic event accounting for less than 1% of strokes resulting in brain parenchymal injuries. Diagnosis and prognosis are still challenging due to highly variable clinical course and etiologies. Beyond thrombosis, different CVST-related parenchymal injuries may occur and include edema, ischemic strokes, and intra-cerebral hemorrhage (ICH; i.e., parenchymal/subdural hematomas, and subarachnoid hemorrhages), which are identified in 40%-60% of patients without clearly identified mechanisms. In this perspective, experimental animal models contribute to the understanding of initiation, propagation, and resolution of thrombosis, as well as brain-related damages. Last but not least, animal models may be useful to study new therapeutic approaches. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of CVST experimental models, focusing on their strengths, limits, and contribution to the current knowledge.

Measuring beta-galactose exposure on platelets: Standardization and healthy reference values

BACKGROUND

Correct diagnosis of the cause of thrombocytopenia is crucial for the appropriate management of patients. Hyposialylation/desialylation (characterized by abnormally high β-galactose exposure) accelerates platelet clearance and can lead to thrombocytopenia. However, the reference range for β-galactose exposure in healthy individuals has not been defined previously.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the present study was to develop a standardized assay of platelet β-galactose exposure for implementation in a clinical laboratory.

METHODS

β-Galactose exposure was measured in platelet-rich plasma by using flow cytometry and Ricinus communis agglutinin (RCA). A population of 120 healthy adults was recruited to study variability.

RESULTS

We determined an optimal RCA concentration of 12.5 μg/mL. The measure was stable for up to 4 hours (mean fluorescence intensity [MFI]-RCA: 1233 ± 329 at 0 hour and 1480 ± 410 at 4 hours). The platelet count did not induce a variation of RCA and the measure of RCA was stable when tested up to 24 hours after blood collection (MFI-RCA: 1252 ± 434 at day 0 and 1140 ± 297 24 hours after blood sampling). To take into account the platelet size, results should be expressed as RCA/forward scatter ratio. We used the assay to study variability in 120 healthy adults, and we found that the ratio is independent of sex and blood group.

CONCLUSION

We defined a normal range in a healthy population and several preanalytical and analytical variables were evaluated, together with positive and negative controls. This assay may assist in the diagnosis of thrombocytopenic diseases linked to changes in β-galactose exposure.