Elevated glycosylation of CD36 in platelets is a risk factor for oxLDL mediated platelet activation in type 2 diabetes.

Platelet activation and related cardiovascular complications are the hallmarks of type 2 diabetes (T2D). We investigated the mechanism of platelet activation in T2D using mass spectrometry- based identification of differentially expressed platelet proteins with a focus on glycosylated forms. Glycosylation is considered one of the common post-translational modifications in T2D, and N/O-linked glycosylation of glycoproteins/integrins is known to play crucial roles in platelet activation. Our platelet proteome data revealed elevated levels of glycoproteins GPIbα, GPIIbIIIa, GPIV (CD36), GPV and integrins in T2D patients. T2D platelets had elevated N-linked glycosylation of CD36 at asparagine (Asn) 408,417 . Enrichment analysis revealed a close association of glycosylated CD36 with thrombospondin-1, fibrinogen and SERPINA1 in T2D platelets. The glycosylation of CD36 has previously been reported to increase cellular uptake of long-chain fatty acids. Our in silico molecular docking data also showed a favourable binding of cholesterol with glycosylated Asn 417 CD36 as compared to the non-glycosylated form. We further investigated the CD36:LDL cholesterol axis in T2D. Elevated levels of oxidized-LDL (oxLDL) were found to cause significant platelet activation via CD36-mediated stimulation of Lyn-JNK signaling. Sulfo-n-succinimidyl oleate (SSO), an inhibitor of CD36, effectively inhibited oxLDL-mediated platelet activation and adhesion in vitro. Our study suggests increased glycosylation of CD36 in T2D platelets as a potential route for oxLDL-mediated platelet activation. The oxLDL:CD36 axis may thus be exploited as a prospective target to develop therapeutics against thrombosis in T2D.