![]() To make contact with the broken blood vessel, platelets grow long tentacles and then resemble a spider or an octopus. When platelets receive that signal, they’ll respond by traveling to the area and transforming into their “active” formation. A blood vessel will send out a signal when it becomes damaged. ![]() They’re literally shaped like small plates in their non-active form. Platelets, the smallest of our blood cells, can only be seen under a microscope. It’s to stop us from bleeding.” What makes platelets change their shape? There’s an evolutionary reason why they’re there. “When you get a cut, for example, the platelets bind to the site of the damaged vessel, thereby causing a blood clot. ![]() “Platelets are the cells that circulate within our blood and bind together when they recognize damaged blood vessels,” says Marlene Williams, M.D., director of the Coronary Care Unit at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center. ![]()
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