Identification and characterization of α1 -antitrypsin in fibrin clots

α1-Antitrypsin deficiency: count me in please!

Respiratory medicine is facing formidable challenges in the 21st century. Indeed, most respiratory medical research is becoming interconnected, translational and transnational, all embedded within so-called “planetary health” [1]. However, renewing estimates and trends from classical, descriptive epidemiology, including how many patients of a given condition are around, and how many are expecte...

Circulating polymers in α1-antitrypsin deficiency.

Most individuals carry two wild-type M alleles of the SERPINA1 gene which encodes a1-antitrypsin. 95% of severe deficiency of a1-antitrypsin is associated with the Z allele (Glu342Lys; denoted PiZZ in the homozygote), and with the retention and polymerisation of a1-antitrypsin within hepatocytes [1]. These polymers are contained within periodic acid–Schiff-positive, diastase-resistant inclusion...

Dynamic changes of fibrin architecture during fibrin formation and intrinsic fibrinolysis of fibrin-rich clots.

Clotting and fibrinolysis are initiated simultaneously in vivo, and fibrinolysis usually occurs without any individualized lysis front (intrinsic fibrinolysis). We have developed a novel model to assess whether morphological changes resulting from intrinsic fibrinolysis are similar to those previously reported at the lysis front using externally applied lytic agents. Fibrin assembly and fibrino...

Ventilation inhomogeneity in α1-antitrypsin deficient emphysema

Incorporation of thrombospondin into fibrin clots.

Thrombospondin is a major platelet glycoprotein which is released from platelets during blood coagulation. We examined the interaction of thrombospondin with polymerizing fibrin. Thrombospondin, purified from human platelets and labeled with 125I, became incorporated into clots formed from both plasma and purified fibrinogen. Plasma clots contained somewhat less thrombospondin than clots formed...