Abstract
Silver et al. reported that the intravenous injection of arachidonic acid (A. A.) caused sudden death in rabbits (Science 183: 1085, 1974); Injection of A. A. (1.4mg) caused death within 3 minutes and histological examination showed platelet thrombus in the microvasculature of the lungs.
On this paper, authors investigated whether A. A. induced the platelet aggregation in vitro and in vivo as Silver et al, reported. Although A. A. did not aggregate the human platelet in vitro, A. A. exposed to ultraviolet rays for 3 hours induced the platelet aggregation. The former, nontreated A. A., did not cause sudden death in rabbits, but the intravenous and/or intracarotid administration of the latter, treated A. A. (2mg/kg), caused death in rabbits.
There existed some relation in the treated A. A. between the toxicity for rabbits and the induction of platelet aggregation in vitro. All rabbits, which were given treated-A. A., showed platelet aggregation in the microvasculature of the lungs (per intravenous) and in that of brain (per carotid). The pulmonal arteries showed the increasing of vascular permeability and the degenerative changes in arterial walls.
