Background
Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is widely used in regenerative dentistry. Furthermore, it is often applied in the pretreatment of titanium implants to improve their surface bioaffinity and initial stability. However, effects of PRP application on implant surface at cellular and molecular levels remain poorly understood. Therefore, we examined platelet adhesion on commercially pure titanium (
cp
-Ti) plates, with a particular focus on fibrinogen (FGN), von Willebrand factor (vWF), and fibronectin (FN), in the presence or absence of plasma components.
Methods
Citrated blood samples were obtained from six healthy male volunteers, and pure-PRP (P-PRP) and pure platelet suspensions in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) were prepared. Platelet adhesion on
cp
-Ti plate surface was evaluated by phalloidin staining and tetrazolium dye assay. Distribution of FGN, vWF, FN, albumin, CD62P, and CD63 was examined by immunocytochemical analysis.
Results
Platelets in PBS suspensions rapidly and time-dependently adhered to
cp
-Ti plate surface, but this adhesion was substantially disturbed by the presence of plasma components. FGN was most preferably adsorbed regardless of the presence or absence of plasma components, while vWF and FN showed greater accumulation on platelet adhesion area.
Conclusions
Although FGN is rapidly and abundantly adsorbed on
cp
-Ti plate surface, vWF and FN function as major platelet adhesion molecules in citrated blood samples. After pretreatment with P-PRP, however, platelets adhered to
cp
-Ti much less efficiently. Therefore, P-PRP pretreatment might not directly contribute to surface functionalization, initial stabilization, and osseointegration of machined or similar types of implants.
Electronic supplementary material
The online version of this article (10.1186/s40729-019-0160-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.