Preparation of peptide-carrying microspheres with bioactivity on platelets.

A tetrapeptide RGDS (Arg-Gly-Asp-Ser), which is one of the active sites of cell adhesive proteins, was synthesized according to the solution method and covalently coupled onto monodisperse microspheres. The biospecific activity of the RGDS-carrying microspheres was investigated by measuring the stimulatory effect of the microspheres on platelets. Large and tightly packed platelet aggregation accompanied with drastic ATP release was induced by the RGDS-carrying microspheres. It was confirmed that the specific platelet aggregation was attributed to the activity of the immobilized RGDS by comparison with those induced by other microspheres.