Suspensions of human and pig blood platelets have been studied by 31p NMR at 145.7 MHz and by chemical and radiochemical determination of nucleotide levels. In both types of platelets the cytoplasmic nucleotide pool, which was prelabeled by incubation with 1j4CJadenine, was selectively reduced by addition of H202/NaN3 or 2-deoxyglucose/antimycin A. After the reduction of cytoplasmic ATP in human platelets, the 31P NMR spectra showed an almost complete loss of the nucleoside di-and triphosphate resonances at temperatures examined (4-50'C), indicating that only the cytoplasmic nucleotides had been observed, with no detectable contributions from the granular ATP, ADP, and pyrophosphate. Slow tumbling of the granular nucleotides, possibly due to aggregation, is the probable explanation of their undetectability at 145.7 MHz. Similar experiments showed that, in pig platelets, granular ATP and ADP were not detected by 31P NMR at 4VC but were observed at higher temperatures, indicating that aggregation may be occurring at the lower temperatures. Upon thrombin stimulation of human platelets, the NMR spectra and the chemical and radioactivity analyses showed that the granular adenylates and pyrophosphate were secreted, and that cytoplasmic ATP levels were appreciably reduced.Blood platelets are free-floating anucleate cells that play a fundamental role in hemostasis and the maintenance of vascular integrity. These functions are mediated, in part, by adenine nucleotides, which are segregated into two distinct compartments (1). One of the two compartments is the membraneenclosed dense granules, in which as much as 65% of the total cellular ATP and ADP is sequestered together with serotonin, pyrophosphate, and Ca2+ in human platelets (2) and with serotonin and Mg2+ in pig (3) platelets. The cytoplasmic pool contains the remaining adenylates with an ATP/ADP ratio of 7-10; this pool participates in the energy metabolism of the cell and, unlike the granular pool, is affected by metabolic inhibitors (4, 5). During platelet secretion at 370C the granular pool is extruded to the extracellular volume, whereas the cytoplasmic ATP is retained intracellularly, and is partially converted into hypoxanthine (1). When platelets are incubated with radioactive nucleotide precursors such as l14C]adenine, the cytoplasmic pool is labeled rapidly (half time~40 sec); in contrast, the granules incorporate the label slowly (half time -18 hr) (6).High-resolution 31P nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) provides a rapid, accurate, and noninvasive method for the study of phosphorylated metabolites in vivo (7-9). Furthermore, 31P NMR measurements possess the capability to distinguish among nucleoside phosphate resonances arising from different subcellular compartments when these compartments maintain differences in pH, divalent cation concentration, or both. With this in mind, we have examined the 31P NMR spectra of resting platelets, of cells challenged with thrombin to induce secretion, and of cells metabolically perturbed with H202 plus NaN3 or...