Basic blood coagulation Flashcards
What is required for the process of coagulation
- Functioning platelets
- Functioning endothelium
- Coagulation factors
What happens when you cut yourself?
- Blood vessel damage
- This disrupts the endothelium
- Leading to the exposure of tissue factor and collagen
- This triggers primary haemostatsis, platelets are recruited
- Secondary haemostasis means the coagulation factors are activated
- primary and secondary haemostasiss occurs at the same time
Explain primary haemostasis
- Hole - present von willebrand factor
- Platelets get attracted through glycoprotein receptors IB59, allowing platelets to adhere to von willebrand factor
- The platelets then get activated and release their granular content
- This causes more platelets to be attracted -> platelet aggregation
- They also expose phospholipids
Explain secondary haemostasis
•Activation of the coagulation factors •cascade of events occurs: - initiation via the extrinsic pathway - propagation via the intrinsic pathway - thrombin generation - fibrin production - the 'clot'
What does every step of the initiation of the coagulation cascade require?
- Phospholipid (from the platelet surface)
* Calcium (found in the blood)
Fully explain the initiation of the coagulation cascade
- Tissue factor activated Factor VII
- Activated VII (VIIa) activates Factor X
- Xa + II (prothrombin) and Va = prothrombinase complex which allows the activation of prothrombin to thrombin
- IIa (thrombin) activates XIII to XIIIa and turns fibrinogen into fibrin
- Fibrin is activated by XIIIa to cross linked fibrin
Fully explain the propagation of the coagulation cascade
- Thrombin (IIa) activates VIII and XI
- XIa activates IX
- IXa and VIIIa activate factor X
- Xa+Va activates II (prothrombin) to thrombin
Explain the regulation of the coagulation cascade
- Factor Xa stimulates Tissue Factor Pathway Inhibitor (TFPI) inhibiting the activation of Factor VII
- Thrombin binds to the receptor thrombomodulin in the endothelium leading to the activation of protein C to APC (activated Protein C)
- APC and Protein S down regulates Va and VIII
- Antithrombin down regulates VIIa, IIa, XIa, IXa, Xa
Explain fibrinolysis
- Fibrin is converted to cross linked fibrin by XIIIa
- Plasmin stimulates tPA and uPA
- plasminogen is converted to plasmin by tPA and uPA
- Cross linked fibrin + plasmin -> Fibrin degrading products (FDPs) including D dimers
What are the assessments of primary haemostasis?
- In vivo: bleeding time (puncture the skin and time how long until stops
- Ex vivo: FBC (platelet count), platelet function (light transmission aggregometry)
Explain light transmission aggregometry
- Take platelet rich plasma and add chemical agonists to make platelets aggregate
- Pass light through the sample
- As they clump, less light passes through the sample to the detector
- Graph produced: normal = dips slightly then steep increase that levels off
What are the assessments of secondary haemostasis?
- Prothrombin time
- Activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT)
- Thrombin clotting time (TCT)
- Individual coagulation factor assays
What are the pre-analytical sample requirements for the coagulation tests?
- Citrate sample to chelate all calcium
- Centrifuge to separate the cellular components and to make platelet poor plasma to take out the effect the platelets have on the clotting cascade
What are the principles of the coagulation tests?
- Add reagents to Platelet Poor Plasma (PPP)
- Perform assay at body temperature (37 degrees)
- Measure time for clot to form from the addition of the reagents
- All results are expressed in seconds/ ratio to normal plasma (normal result 1.0)
What is prothrombin time a measure of?
It simulated activation via the extrinsic pathway