Red blood cell-derived semaphorin 7A promotes arterial thrombosis via platelet integrin αIIb

Chaojun Tang, Ph.D.
Soochow University
Su Zhou, Jiang Su Province, China

Semaphorin 7A (Sema7A), an axonal guidance molecule, is expressed in erythrocytes and has been shown to promote thrombo-inflammation. Chaojun Tang, Ph.D., discussed the aim of this study to investigate the role of red blood cell-derived Sema7A in arterial thrombosis and the underlying mechanism. The team reported that targeting Sema7A significantly attenuates thrombosis induced by disturbed flow and FeCl3. The team examined the downstream signaling pathways by immunoprecipitation, mass spectrometry and bioinformatics analysis. The authors concluded that red blood cell-derived Sema7A binds to platelet integrin αIIb to promote thrombus formation providing potentially new approaches for the prevention and treatment of arterial thrombosis.