“…One important point is to be able to quantify the number of receptors expressed on platelets in order to assess the inter-individual variability in the general population, to characterize patients with inherited deficiencies, and to monitor and study patients treated with P2Y 12 targeting drugs [4]. Various radioligands have been used to characterize and quantify the platelet P2Y receptors such as, [ 14 C]ADP [5,6], [ 3 H]ADP [6,7], [ 3 H]2-methylthio-ADP [8], [β- 32 P]2-methylthio-ADP [9,10], and [β- 33 P]2-methylthio-ADP [11], but they all share several weaknesses: (a) They are metabolically unstable and may be cleaved by a number of enzymes such as alkaline phosphatase and ectonucleotidases; (b) being agonists, they may complicate the quantification when intact, living cells are used and receptors are internalized upon activation; (c) they do not discriminate between P2Y 1 and P2Y 12 receptors. In the last decade, the only one possibility to selectively quantify P2Y 12 receptors was to use the non-selective radiolabeled ligand 2-methylthio-ADP in the presence of a P2Y 1 antagonist such as N 6 -methyl-2′-deoxyadenosine-3′,5′-bisphosphate (MRS2179) [12] or 2-iodo-N 6 -methyl-(N)-methanocarba-2′-deoxyadenosine-3′,5′-bisphosphate (MRS2500) [13].…”