Summary
TAFI (thrombin activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor) down regulates fibrinolysis after
activation by relatively high concentrations of thrombin generated during coagulation
via thrombin mediated factor XI activation and subsequent activation of the intrinsic
pathway. It is this secondary burst of thrombin that is severely diminished in haemophilia
A, a deficiency of coagulation factor VIII. We therefore investigated the role of
TAFI in haemophilia A by measuring the clot lysis times of tissue factor induced fibrin
formation and tPA mediated fibrinolysis. In haemophilia A plasma clot lysis times
were normal at relatively high tissue factor concentrations but severely decreased
at moderate to low tissue factor concentrations, indicating that the thrombin generation
via the extrinsic pathway was insufficient to activate TAFI. Addition of factor VIII,
TAFI or thrombomodulin restored the clot lysis times at low tissue factor concentrations.
This confirms the hypothesis that the bleeding disorder in haemophilia A is not merely
a defect in the initial clot formation but is in fact a triple defect: reduced thrombin
formation via the extrinsic pathway at low tissue factor concentrations, a reduced
secondary burst of thrombin generation via the intrinsic pathway and a defective down
regulation of the fibrinolytic system by the intrinsic pathway.
Keywords
Haemophilia A - coagulation - fibrinolysis - factor VIII - Thrombin activatable fibrinolysis
inhibitor (TAFI) - carboxypeptidase U