Platelet glycoprotein VI and C-type lectin-like receptor 2 deficiency accelerates wound healing by impairing vascular integrity in mice

Platelets promote wound healing by forming a vascular plug and by secreting growth factors and cytokines. Glycoprotein (GP)VI and C-type lectin-like receptor (CLEC)-2 signal through a (hem)-immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif, which induces platelet activation. GPVI and CLEC-2 support vascular integrity during inflammation in the skin through regulation of leukocyte migration and function, and by sealing sites of vascular damage. In this study, we investigated the role of impaired vascular integrity due to GPVI and/or CLEC-2 deficiency in wound repair using a full-thickness excisional skin wound model in mice. Transgenic mice deficient in both GPVI and CLEC-2 exhibited accelerated skin wound healing, despite a marked impairment in vascular integrity. The local and temporal bleeding in the skin led to greater plasma protein entry, including fibrinogen and clotting factors, was associated with increased fibrin generation, reduction in wound neutrophils and M1 macrophages, decreased level of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and enhanced angiogenesis at day 3 after injury. Accelerated wound healing was not due to developmental defects in CLEC-2 and GPVI double-deficient mice as similar results were observed in GPVI-deficient mice treated with a podoplanin-blocking antibody. The rate of wound healing was not altered in mice deficient in either GPVI or CLEC-2. Our results show that, contrary to defects in coagulation, bleeding following a loss of vascular integrity caused by platelet CLEC-2 and GPVI deficiency facilitates wound repair by increasing fibrin(ogen) deposition, reducing inflammation, and promoting angiogenesis.