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. 2020 Mar 12;10:4621. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-61309-3

Figure 2.

Figure 2

Megakaryocytes contain extranuclear histones, which are passed on to platelets. The proposed mechanism for the development of platelet-associated histones (PAHs). A mononuclear hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) differentiates into a megakaryoblast and undergoes endomitoses to form multiple nuclei. The nuclei (purple) contain various intranuclear histones (green circles). Once differentiation is complete and a mature megakaryocyte is made, the cell begins undergoing a controlled apoptosis, where the nuclear membrane develops pores and histones begin to leak into the cytoplasmic compartment. Upon the formation of proplatelet buds, the cytoplasmic and cell membrane-associated histones are also packed into the resultant platelets. The histones can be present in histones either primarily bound to the cell membrane (1), primarily within the cytoplasm (2), or a combination of the 1 and 2, where platelet activation results in the increased expression of histones on the cell membrane and possible release into the environment accompanied by degranulation.