Coupling of anti-thrombotic agents to red blood cells offers safer and more effective management of thrombosis

Abstract

Extract: When we are wounded, either externally (for instance, when we cut ourselves) or internally (for instance, due to gastric ulcer or brain hemorrhage), blood clots -- sponge-like plugs that are rapidly formed in response to the injury by activated blood platelets and fibrin in a process called coagulation -- prevent profound bleeding. Thus, good or hemostatic clots save our lives. However, under pathological conditions blood clots can also form inside vessels. Such bad or thrombotic clots occlude blood vessels and cause oxygen starvation of vital organs including the brain (stroke), heart (acute myocardial infarction) or lungs (pulmonary embolism). Thrombosis is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular and other disease conditions. Diverse anti-thrombotic means are being developed. For instance, anticoagulants (such as heparin) and platelet inhibitors (such as aspirin) help to prevent formation of clots (blood thinners). Fibrinolytics, known as plasminogen activators (such as tissue-type plasminogen activator, or tPA) dissolve formed clots by degrading the fibrin meshwork. Both types of therapeutics are widely used in medical practice, e.g., for treatment of two forms of ischemic heart disease caused by thrombi in coronary vessels -- acute myocardial infarction and unstable angina.