Contribuição ao estudo da ação in vitro do veneno da aranha marrom, Loxosceles gaucho, sobre plaquetas humanas e de coelho. Participação das plaquetas na dermonecrose induzida experimentalmente pelo veneno loxoscélico em coelhos / Contribution to the study of the in vitro action induced by the venom of the brown spider, Loxosceles gaucho, on human and rabbit platelets. Platelet participation in the dermonecrotic lesion experimentally induced in rabbits by the loxoscelic venom

AUTOR(ES)
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO

2007

RESUMO

Venoms from Loxosceles spiders exhibit a wide range of activities on different cells, tissues and systems, being specially evident their ability to cause a dermonecrotic lesion. In a previous paper, we showed that Loxosceles gaucho spider venom induces intense thrombocytopenia in rabbits. Thus, in the present study, we firstly aimed to evaluate the in vitro interaction between human and rabbits platelets and L. gaucho venom and its major component, the sphingomyelinase fraction. Secondly, we investigated the platelet role in the dermonecrotic lesion formation using an experimental model of thrombocytopenia in rabbits. Both total venom and its sphingomyelinase fraction stimulated in vitro aggregation per se in platelet-rich plasma from both species, but a more intense response was obtained with human platelets. Taking into consideration that neither total venom nor its sphingomyelinase fraction induced aggregation of washed platelets, it can be deduced that one or more plasma components are necessary to induce this response. Moreover, LDH data indicated that total venom, at least at the concentration levels used in this study, cannot induce platelet lysis. Regarding platelet activation, total venom was able to increase the expression of LIBS1 on both human and rabbit platelet surface and P-selectin on only rabbit platelet surface. However, the sphingomyelinase fraction did not increase the expression of any marker of platelet activation, at least in the experimental conditions used in this study. Another in vitro study showed that both total venom and its sphingomyelinase fraction induce an increase in human and rabbit platelet adhesion, with the sphingomyelinase fraction exhibiting a dose-dependent response. For the study using an animal model of thrombocytopenia, it was necessary to previously produce goat antibodies against rabbit platelets, which showed to be effective to induce an intense thrombocytopenia in rabbits. Histopathological analysis of venom-induced dermic tissue lesion indicated that platelet absence does not decrease the formation of intravascular thrombi in the injured area. Nonetheless, bigger areas of equimosis and necrotic scabs could be observed in the dermonecrotic lesion of rabbits injected with loxoscelic venom and depleted of platelets. In the different groups, plasma levels of von Willembrand factor, prothrombin and activated partial thromboplastin times, and data from phagocytosis tests using polymorphonuclear cells isolated from rabbit periferical blood were similar comparing thrombocitopenic rabbits with those exhibiting normal platelet count; therefore, we can deduce that there is not any expressive alteration in endotelial cells, coagulation system and phagocytic ability of polymorphonuclear leukocytes via their complement receptor C3b. In conclusion, the loxoscelic venom is able to unchain in vitro different mechanisms leading to adhesion, activation and aggregation of both human and rabbit platelets. Furthermore, due to differences in the dermic lesion patterns between thrombocitopenic and normal animals, we can conclude that platelets must play a key role in controlling the expansion and severity of the dermonecrotic lesion induced in rabbits by L. gaucho venom.

ASSUNTO(S)

aggregation dermonecrose loxosceles adhesion adesão platelet loxosceles agregação plaquetas

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