Physical Forces-Mediated Platelet Activation: Devices and Effects with an Emphasis on Vibro-Acoustics

Abstract

Platelets are the first responders when the integrity of the vasculature has been compromised and blood is leaking out of a blood vessel. Platelets activate, aggregate, and adhere to form a platelet plug at the injury site to maintain the vasculature's hemodynamics. However, when this hemodynamics balance is compromised while the integrity of the vasculature is maintained, platelets can still activate and cause cardiovascular disease. Hemodynamics can change with the introduction of disruptive physical forces. These disruptive physical forces can be unwanted vibro-acoustic stimuli originating from snoring or mechanical circulatory support devices (MCSD) or an increase of laminar shear stress due to the narrowing of the vasculature. The extent to which these physical forces stimulate platelets is still unknown. With the development of an in-vitro vibro-acoustic exposure device (VAED), we quantified the activation level of vibro-acoustic pathological stimuli on platelets, i.e., snoring in obstructive sleep apnea. To answer the question can vibro-acoustic stimuli influence platelets behavior? As well as studied different frequencies within the range of 100-1000Hz found in snoring, other pathologies, and MCSD. This range of frequencies is commonly found throughout our environment and in MCSD and thus could provide a broader view of the extent of vibro-acoustic stimuli on platelets. Along with this work, we improved the performance of our current hemodynamic shear device for laminar shear stress exposure to platelets. We continued the development of a technique to deform a single platelet for mechanical characterization.