Summary
To determine whether the long-term feeding of dietary fats affect platelet functions
in man, platelet aggregation (to thrombin ADP, collagen, epinephrine) and clotting
activity of platelet-rich plasma (PRP), platelet-poor plasma and of washed platelets,
were studied in a mobile-laboratory in 44 healthy male farmers (40-45 years) from
two French regions Var and Moselle, in relation to lipemia, glycemia, dietary nutriments,
and platelet phospholipid composition. In the Moselle subjects, the platelet clotting
activity of PRP and of washed platelets, the platelet aggregation to thrombin and
ADP, were highly significantly (p <0.001) increased as compared to those of Var, but
not the plasma cholesterol, which was identical in the two regions.
In Moselle, the intake of total calories, total lipids and saturated fats was higher
than in the Var.
However, it was only with the saturated fat intake (mostly stearic acid) that the
platelet clotting activity (p <0.01) and the platelet aggregation (p <0.001) were
highly significantly correlated. The platelet clotting activity was also significantly
(p <0.001) correlated with the fatty acid composition of the platelet phospholipid
fractions phosphatidyl serine + phosphatidyl inositol.
