"Using Artificial Platelet Nanotechnology to Better Regulate Blood Clotting"

The next Science Café Cleveland event will feature Anirban Sen Gupta, associate professor of biomedical engineering. At the event, titled "Using Artificial Platelet Nanotechnology to Better Regulate Blood Clotting," Sen Gupta will describe what scientists have learned about the platelets' complex art of regulating blood clot formation. Additionally, he will highlight how his research team is using this knowledge to form artificial platelet nanotechnology that can be used to make or break clots in various clinical scenarios and thus have the potential to help patients in critical situations. Funding support for his research comes from the National Institutes of Health, Case Coulter Translational Partnership, Ohio Third Frontier program and the Department of Defense. The event will take place Monday, March 12, from 7 to 8 p.m. at the Music Box Supper Club (1148 Main Ave.).

About the lecture

Have you ever got a paper-cut or shaving nick? Ever got a heart attack from a clogged artery? In both of those scenarios, there is a tiny blood cell called a “platelet” that plays a key role in regulating the blood clotting process. In one case the clot is helpful in stopping bleeding (a process called “hemostasis”) while in the other the clot is harmful because it blocks blood flow in an artery or a vein (a condition known as “thrombosis”). The billions of platelets coursing through our blood, each with a diameter 50 times smaller than that of a hair follicle, maintain surveillance near the blood vessel wall to make sure there are no leaks (i.e. bleeding). In the event of wall damage, these tiny cells rush to the site of bleeding and stick themselves onto the leaking point to seal it, through a complex cascade of molecular mechanisms. People born with defective platelet number or function, people whose platelet number or function are affected by some disease (such as cancer), and people who lose platelets very quickly due to heavy bleeding (due to accidents, military injuries, etc.), all have one thing in common: They cannot form the sealing clots effectively and run the risk of bleeding out and organ damage. On the other hand, if the clot keeps forming uncontrollably, then it can block not only bleeding out, but can also form a blockage within the blood vessel that can lead to dangerous incidents like heart attacks and strokes.