COCULTURE OF CHICKEN THROMBOCYTES AND MONOCYTES - MORPHOLOGICAL-CHANGES AND LECTIN-BINDING

Chicken leukocytes were separated from blood on a Percoll cushion foll owing adherence on coverslips, resulting in a coculture of thrombocyte s and monocytes. This system was characterized by light microscopy, sc anning and transmission electron microscopy, by lectin binding and act in localization in thrombocytes. During the first 24 hours nuclear con densation, cytoplasmic shrinkage, detachment and death of thrombocytes were observed. In contrast, monocytes gradually increased their sprea ding capacity, specially after thrombocyte detachment from the coversl ips. During culture, a large number of fucose and beta-galactose resid ues were expressed on the surface of thrombocytes, revealed by the lec tins Ulex europaeus I and Arachis hypogaea, respectively. Labeling of the monocyte surface with several lectins also increased with the cult ivation time. Thrombocytes showed the formation of a net with actin in volvement.