Effects of a protective agent on freeze-dried platelet-rich plasma

Freeze-drying is an effective means of storing platelets. In this study, we investigated the effects of a protective agent on freeze-dried platelet-rich plasma (FD-PRP) after a 12-week preservation period. Platelet structure was measured by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and the expression levels of procaspase activating compound (PAC)-1 and CD62P were measured by flow cytometry. The levels of transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β), platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were determined by ELISA. The effect of FD-PRP on cell proliferation was measured by cell counting. TEM revealed that most platelets were intact, and their internal structure was evident. The expression levels of the platelet activation marker CD62P in FD-PRP and fresh PRP were 36.83% ± 8.21 and 35.47% ± 4.11, respectively, without a significant difference (P > 0.05). The expression levels of PAC-1 in FD-PRP and fresh PRP were 3.23% ± 0.49 and 2.83% ± 0.44, respectively, without a significant difference (P > 0.05). Upon activation of FD-PRP and fresh PRP by thrombin, the levels of TGF-β, PDGF and VEGF were not significantly decreased in FD-PRP. Moreover, FD-PRP promoted cell proliferation in a manner similar to that of fresh PRP. The protective agent maintained the biological activity of FD-PRP after a 12-week preservation period.