Plating Up

Small but mighty, platelets are the blood cells that enable coagulation and help stop wounds from bleeding too much. Having too few platelets, a condition known as thrombocytopenia, can be devastating. However, new research into the origin of these specialised cells could pave the way towards solutions. Platelets arise in a peculiar way; in the bone marrow, cells called megakaryocytes grow and replicate their DNA several times without dividing, forming giant cells which then break apart to produce platelets. Experiments demonstrated that genetically removing a key cell cycle protein, CDK1, could effectively re-program defective megakaryocytes to produce more platelets, and alleviate the symptoms of mice suffering from thrombocytopenia. Pictured above are two of these modified cells, with the projections which give rise to new platelets. This discovery raises the possibility of increasing platelet counts in patients, and could also contribute to the design of less damaging treatments for blood cancers.

Written by Emmanuelle Briolat

Emmanuelle Briolat

Writer

A researcher specialising in visual signals in Lepidoptera, camouflage and the effects of light pollution, Emmanuelle’s writing covers a range of topics, from biomedical research to children’s books about moth defences.

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• Image by Marcos Malumbres
• Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Oncologicas (CNIO)
• Originally published under a Creative Commons Licence (BY 4.0)
• Research published in Developmental Cell, January 2015