Fellowship for Suganya Manivannan: Student Scholarship in Cardiovascular Disease & Stroke

Diabetes and obesity are two health issues that are growing at an alarming rate in the United States. Studies have shown that in 2002 alone, $132 billion dollars were spent in the treatment of diabetes. The major morbidity and mortality in diabetic patients comes from accelerated cardiovascular disease, including atherosclerosis and its complication acute thrombosis. Platelet function has been reported in some, but not all studies to be enhanced in diabetics. Since platelets are an essential component of acute arterial thrombosis, hyperfunction of platelets could contribute to acute thrombosis in this patient population. In my project, I will study platelet function in juveniles with newly diagnosed Type II diabetes and in obese juveniles and compare the results to those obtained in age-matched controls. I will also investigate the contribution of activation of protein kinase to diabetic platelet function. Our laboratory has previously demonstrated that activation of PKCbeta by hyperglycemia results in a function complex with the integrin aiphaVbeta3 in smooth muscle cells and that this association is required for the enhanced migratory phenotype observed with exposure to high glucose. In my project, I will test whether a similar association occurs with PKCbeta and the major platelet integrin alphallbbeta3 (which shares the same beta subunit as alphaVbeta3). By using a juvenile population, we hope to be able to identify changes in platelet function that occur in the absence of other systemic diseases that often accompany diabetes in adults © American Heart Association, 2004