PHARM - Drugs That Modulate Haemostasis and Thrombosis - Week 6 Flashcards
Define haemostasis.
Arrest of blood loss from damaged vessels
Define coagulation.
Formation of a fibrin clot in a blood vessel
Define thrombosis.
Pathological formation of a haemostatic plug in a blood vessel in the absence of blood loss
Name the two kinds of thrombi and where they occur.
Arterial thrombus (white) Venous thrombus (red)
What are the three components of a white arterial thrombus?
Platelets and white blood cells in a fibrous mesh
What are aterial thrombi associated with?
Vessel wall damage (atherosclerosis)
What are venous thrombi associated with?
Blood stasis
What are the three components of a venous thrombus?
Fibrin, platelets, and red blood cells
What can happen to a venous thrombus?
Can break off and lead to an embolus lodged in the lungs (pulmonary embolism) or the brain (stroke)
Define a thromboembolus.
A blockage in a blood vessel caused by a dislodged thrombus.
Does damage to a blood vessel lead to vasodilation or vasoconstriction?
Vasoconstriction.
Is 5-HT a vasodilator or vasoconstrictor?
Powerful vasoconstrictor
Describe in three steps, the mechanism of vasoconstriction following blood vessel damage.
Collagen exposed on a damaged vessel wall.
Platelets stick to the collagen and activate
ADP and 5-HT released from platelets
Describe in 5 steps, the mechanism of platelet activation and adhesion.
ADP from activated platelets cause others to activate and morph
Granule contents (ADP/5-HT) are secreted
Mediators are synthesised (thromboxane)
Platelets aggregate and adhere via fibrinogen
Soft plug formed
Platelets aggregate and adhere via fibrinogen and bridge between which two receptors?
GPIIb an GPIIIa
Briefly describe in steps, how a platelet activates.
PLA2 cleaves phospholipids to release free arachidonic acid
COX enzymes convert arachidonic acid to TXA2
TXA2 mediates increased Ca2+, which induces adhesion and aggregation
Name 4 stimuli for platelet activation.
Collagen
Thrombin
Thromboxane
ADP
Describe the mechanism of fibrin deposition.
Thrombin cleaves fibrinogen into fibrin, which is an insoluble monomer
Is fibrin or fibrinogen soluble?
Fibrinogen
Is thrombin found in the plasma? Explain.
No, it is produced by activating prothrombin
How many cascade reactions are there in haemostasis? List them and note which is faster.
Two
Extrinsic and intrinsic
Extrinsic is faster
What factor is released in the extrinsic pathway?
Thromboplastin
What is the action of thromboplastin?
Converts factor VII to VIIa
What is the factor for the intrinsic pathway?
Exposed collagen (and negative charges, glass etc)
What factor controls cascade inhibition?
Enzyme inhibitors like antithrombin III
What is the action of plasmin?
Fibrinolysis
Describe the three components of Virchow’s triad.
Vessel damage
Blood stasis
Hypercoagulability
Name 2 common situations of blood stasis that leads to thrombus formation.
Atrial fibrillation
Deep vein thrombosis