platelet

[pleyt-lit] /ˈpleɪt lɪt/
noun, Cell Biology
1.
a small platelike body, especially a blood platelet.
Origin
1890-95; plate1 + -let
Examples from the web for platelets
  • So the mosquito is equipped with a powerful enzyme in her saliva to disable the platelets.
  • Then they inject the concentrated platelets at the site of the patient's injury.
  • Electron microscopy turned up no sign of the platelets that would normally gather in a clot.
  • The results are single-layer films composed of many platelets.
  • After a pint of blood is collected, it is processed into its transfusible components: plasma, platelets and red blood cells.
  • That's in contrast to older blood thinners that work by preventing platelets from sticking together.
  • Not to belabor the point, but my stepson also still has platelets that do a decent job of knitting surface wounds without factor.
  • One function produces a substance that makes the tiny wound-plugging blood cells called platelets clump.
  • With platelet disorders, there may be too many or too few platelets, or platelets that do not function well.
  • Thrombocytopenia is any disorder in which there is an abnormally low amount of platelets.
British Dictionary definitions for platelets

platelet

/ˈpleɪtlɪt/
noun
1.
a minute cell occurring in the blood of vertebrates and involved in clotting of the blood Formerly called thrombocyte
Word Origin
C19: a small plate
Word Origin and History for platelets

platelet

n.

1895, formed in English from plate + diminutive suffix -let.

platelets in Medicine

platelet plate·let (plāt'lĭt)
n.
A minute, irregularly shaped, disklike cytoplasmic body found in blood plasma that promotes blood clotting and has no definite nucleus, no DNA, and no hemoglobin. Also called blood platelet, thrombocyte.

platelets in Science
platelet
  (plāt'lĭt)   
Any of the numerous small, round cell fragments found in the blood of mammals that function in the clotting of blood. Platelets contain no nuclei and are formed in the bone marrow from precursor cells called megakaryocytes. Platelets contribute to the coagulation process by adhering to damaged blood vessels, fibrinogen, and other platelets. An inadequate number of platelets leads to uncontrolled bleeding.
platelets in Culture
platelets [(playt-luhts)]

Small, flat disks in the blood that aid in clotting.