Does pycnogenol intensify the efficacy of acetylsalicylic acid in the inhibition of platelet function?
Gola?ski J; Muchova J; Gola?ski R; Durackova Z; Markuszewski L; Wata?a C Department of Hemostasis and Hemostatic Disorders, Medical University Hospital No. 2, Medical University of ?ód?, ?ód?, Poland. INTRODUCTION: Some compounds of herbal origin, such as Pycnogenol (PYC), have been considered as an aid in antiplatelet therapy. Pycnogenol, a French maritime pine bark extract, is a complex mixture of polyphenols that has the ability to reduce human smoking-induced platelet aggregation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the in vitro ability of PYC to improve the efficacy of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) in the inhibition of platelet function. MATERIAL/METHODS: Whole blood, anticoagulated with hirudin, was drawn from 38 volunteers (40.4+/-13.8 years old) and incubated with PYC (10, 50, 100 microg/ml) or/and ASA (25, 100 micromol/l) for 20 min at RT.PYC was dissolved in water (water-PYC group, n=20) or ethanol (ethanol-PYC group, n=18). To investigate platelet functions, PFA-100 closure-t
