Indomethacin-induced accumulation of diglyceride in activated human platelets. The role of diglyceride lipase.

Human platelets incubated with thrombin and indomethacin (50 microgram/ml) exhibit an accumulation of diglyceride larger and more persistent than that observed for platelets incubated with thrombin alone. The accumulation appears to be due to the impaired metabolism of diglyceride by diglyceride lipase. In preparations of broken platelets, indomethacin leads to inhibition of diglyceride lipase. A similar inhibition can be achieved by the addition of soybean lipoxidase, and both inhibitions can be counteracted by reduced glutathione. Further, hydroperoxyeicosatetraenoic acid (100 microM) markedly depresses diglyceride lipase activity, whereas neither the hydroxy derivative nor eicosatetraenoic acid displays a comparable effect. Indomethacin at concentrations comparable to those impairing diglyceride lipase does not inhibit diglyceride kinase. This report constitutes the first evidence for the functioning of diglyceride lipase in normal stimulated platelets, and points to a possible role for fatty acid hydroperoxides in governing the activity of this enzyme.