Determination of critical parameters in platelet margination.

Abstract

An investigation of margination dependence on hematocrit, platelet shape, and viscosity ratio of plasma to cytoplasm is presented. Whole blood is modeled as a suspension of deformable red blood cells (RBCs) and rigid platelets in a viscous liquid. The fluid phase is simulated using the lattice-Boltzmann method, the RBC membranes are modeled with a coarse-grained spectrin-link method, and the dynamics of rigid particles are updated using Newton's equations of motion for axisymmetric shapes. The results emphasize that an increase in hematocrit increases the rate of margination. The viscosity ratio between the interior cytoplasm and suspending fluid can considerably alter the rate of margination. The aspect ratio of surrogate platelet particles influences the rate of margination as well. Spherical particles tend to migrate more quickly than disks. Highly viscous or rigid RBCs slow down margination.