Summary
(3H) noradrenaline was taken up by human platelets and partially converted into sulfoconjugated
noradrenaline. This uptake was inhibited by drugs which have been previously shown
to impair the uptake of 5-HT (ouabain, chlorimipramine) or the storage of 5-HT (tyramine,
reserpine) by platelets. In addition, tyramine and reserpine stimulated the formation
of sulfoconjugated noradrenaline. The efflux of noradrenaline from platelets was measured
in parallel and was found to be directly related to the proportion of non metabolized
to metabolized noradrenaline in the cells. Unlike tyramine, which induced a similar
release of noradrenaline and 5-HT, reserpine was less effective at inducing noradrenaline
release than 5-HT release. This study indicates a preferential localization of noradrenaline
in the granular pool of human platelets with the existence of an extragranular sulfoconjugated
pool which is increased when the granular storage of noradrenaline is impaired. Studies
of noradrenaline fluxes and metabolism may be useful in the understanding of both
acquired and inherited platelet storage pool defects.
Keywords
Platelets - Noradrenaline - Storage - Metabolism - Fluxes