The Quebec Platelet Disorder (QPD) is an unusual bleeding disorder associated with increased platelet stores of urokinase-type plasminogen activator (u-PA) and proteolysis of platelet alpha-granule proteins. The increased u-PA and proteolyzed plasminogen in QPD platelets led us to investigate possible contributions of intracellular plasmin generation to QPD alpha-granule proteolysis. ELISA indicated there were normal amounts of plasminogen and plasmin-alpha(2)-antiplasmin (PAP) complexes in QPD plasmas. Like normal platelets, QPD platelets contained only a small proportion of the blood plasminogen, however, they contained an increased amount of PAP complexes compared to normal platelets (P < 0.005). The quantities of plasminogen stored in platelets were important to induce QPD-like proteolysis of normal alpha-granule proteins by two chain u-PA (tcu-PA) in vitro. Moreover, adding supplemental plasminogen to QPD, but not to control, platelet lysates, triggered further alpha-granule protein proteolysis to forms that comigrated with plasmin degraded proteins. These data suggest the generation of increased but limiting amounts of plasmin within platelets is involved in producing the unique phenotypic changes to alpha-granule proteins in QPD platelets. The QPD is the only known bleeding disorder associated with chronic, intracellular activation of the fibrinolytic cascade.