Effect of thrombolytic treatment delay on myocardial infarct size.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to G M Willems.
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In 1985 we isolated a new vascular anticoagulant protein VAC alpha, now called annexin V, with a high binding affinity (Kd less than 10(-10) M) for phospholipids. Its anticoagulant effect was attributed to displacement of coagulation factors from the phospholipid membrane. The present study demonstrates that the inhibition of prothrombinase activity by annexin V strongly depends on the curvature of the membrane surface and on the calcium concentration. Half-maximal inhibition of prothrombinase on and binding of annexin V to small vesicles, composed of 20% phosphatidylserine and 80% phosphatidylcholine, requires 2-3 mM calcium. With large vesicles and planar bilayers considerably less calcium is required for inhibition of prothrombinase and for lipid binding. Half-maximal binding of annexin V to large vesicles and to planar bilayers occurs at 0.7 and 0.2 mM calcium, respectively. This seemingly confirms the displacement model. The displacement of coagulation factors, however, proved to be incomplete, with residual surface concentrations of factors Xa, Va, and prothrombin sufficient for effective production of thrombin. Cryoelectron microscopy revealed that annexin V binding to large vesicles caused planar facets, indicating the formation of large sheets of clustered annexin V. Apparently, the formation of these two-dimensional arrays is promoted by calcium and hampered by high surface curvature. It is speculated that the complete inhibition (greater than 99%) of prothrombinase activity by annexin V is caused by the reduced lateral mobility of prothrombin and factor Xa in rigid sheets of annexin V covering the membrane.
Prothrombinase assembly was studied on macroscopic planar bilayers consisting of 20% dioleoyl-phosphatidylserine (DOPS) and 80% dioleoyl-phosphatidylcholine (DOPC). The dissociation constant for the binding of factor Xa to the bilayer, measured by ellipsometry, was Kd = 47 +/- 8 nM (mean +/- S.D.) and this value was lowered to Kd = 2.2 +/- 0.3 pM by preadsorption of factor Va. This latter value was determined from direct measurement of steady-state thrombin production. A comparable value of Kd = 1.0 +/- 0.1 pM was found by repeating these experiments in suspensions of phospholipid vesicles, and it was verified that prothrombinase assembly was not influenced by the addition of prothrombin. Using a minute amount (0.094 fmol cm-2) of preadsorbed factor Va, it was found that the rate of prothrombinase assembly exceeds the rate of collisions between Xa molecules from the buffer and the sparse Va molecules on the bilayer. Apparently, factor Xa adsorbs first to the membrane and then associates rapidly with factor Va by lateral diffusion. The data indicate almost instantaneous equilibrium of this complex formation on the surface with a lower limit for the bimolecular rate constant of kon = 2.8 x 10(13) (mol/cm2)-1 s-1. In suspensions of small phospholipid vesicles, prothrombinase assembly is collisionally limited and the value of kon should be proportional to vesicle diameter. This was verified with a method for estimation of kon values from thrombin generation curves. Values of 0.36 x 10(9) and 1.6 x 10(9) M-1 s-1 were found for vesicles of 20-30- and 60-80-nm diameter, respectively.
Production of thrombin by phospholipid-bound prothrombinase complexes has been described as being regulated by the prothrombin concentration in the buffer (free-substrate model) as well as by the concentration of prothrombin adsorbed to the phospholipid surface (bound-substrate model). We studied simultaneous adsorption and conversion of prothrombin on planar bilayers consisting of 20% dioleoylphosphatidylserine and 80% dioleoylphosphatidylcholine. A transport limitation in the conversion of prothrombin was prevented by using a very low (0.3 fmol cm-2) amount of prothrombinase on the bilayer. The Michaelis and catalytic constants thus found were Km = 5.8 +/- 0.7 nM and kcat = 33 +/- 1 s-1 (mean +/- S.D.). The apparent bimolecular rate constant Kcat/Km = 5.7 x 10(9) M-1 s-1 exceeds the theoretically maximal value for the free-substrate model. In contrast, kcat/Km is within the range expected for a diffusion-controlled bound-substrate model. A similar mechanism for prothrombin conversion in suspensions of phospholipid vesicles would imply increasing kcat/Km values for increasing vesicle diameter. This prediction was tested and a 3-fold increase in kcat/Km values was indeed found for vesicles 60-80 nm in diameter compared to vesicles of 20-30 nm diameter. It is concluded that thrombin production is dependent on protein fluxes rather than on protein concentrations.
Data on protein adsorption usually show that for increasing surface coverage the adsorption velocity decreases much faster than linearly. This contrasts to the classical Langmuir model with an adsorption velocity proportional to the number of unoccupied binding sites. It has been shown that this non-linearity may explain phenomena like transient adsorption of different proteins from a protein mixture or dilution-dependent changes in binding properties, collectively called Vroman effects. However, the molecular mechanisms explaining this non-linear behavior remain to be established. A Monte Carlo simulation model is presented that incorporates steric hindrance, lateral mobility and mutual interactions of adsorbed molecules. Experimental data on the adsorption kinetics of prothrombin and annexin V, a recently discovered anticoagulant protein, at phospholipid bilayers are analyzed with this model. A major conclusion is that the steep decline in adsorption rates for increasing surface coverage can be explained, without assuming repulsive forces between adsorbed molecules, as a surface exclusion effect combined with lateral mobility of adsorbed molecules. The fact that annexin V shows this effect to a much lesser degree than prothrombin is tentatively explained by clustering of adsorbed annexin V molecules. A qualitative effect of lateral mobility on the adsorption characteristics, predicted by the model, is confirmed in experiments in which the fluidity of the bilayers was manipulated.
A simulation model for the production of thrombin in plasma is presented. Values of the reaction rate constants as determined in purified systems are used and the model is tested by comparison of simulations of factor Xa, factor Va and thrombin generation curves with experimental data obtained in thromboplastin-activated plasma. Simulations of the effect of hirudin indicate that factor V is predominantly activated by thrombin and not by factor Xa. The model predicts a threshold value for the factor Xa production which, if exceeded, results in explosive and complete activation of prothrombinase. The dependence of this threshold value on different negative feedback reactions, e.g. the inactivation of thrombin and factor Xa by antithrombin III (+ heparin), is investigated. The threshold value, for control plasma in the range of 1-10 pM total factor Xa production, can be raised two orders of magnitude by accelerated inactivation of factor Xa and prothrombinase but is hardly affected by a tenfold increase in the rate of thrombin inactivation or by increased production of activated protein C. This latter effect, however, results in a more gradual input-response relation between factor Xa input and the extent of prothrombinase activation.
A simple model of the initiation of thrombin formation in plasma as a response to factor Xa generation was constructed. In this model factor Xa is considered as an input with a constant concentration. Substrate depletion and inactivation by activated protein C are neglected. The resulting linear model allows a closed form solution by standard methods. With values of the reaction rate constants, as determined in purified systems, this model predicts a highly explosive and complete activation of factor V and prothrombin as a response to any given (steady state) factor Xa concentration even in situations where prothrombinase and(/or) thrombin are rapidly inactivated. However, the time delay to rapid thrombin production becomes longer at lower factor Xa concentrations. Analysis of this time delay as a function of the factor Xa concentration indicates that the gain of the feedback loop of factor V activation by thrombin is so high that the contribution of factor V activation by factor Xa is relatively unimportant for factor Xa concentrations in the nanomolar range. It appears that the time lag is mainly determined by the gain of this feedback loop: similar proportional reductions of each of these reaction rates causes a similar effect. The effects of moderately enhanced inhibition rates of thrombin and prothrombinase on the time delay depend strongly on factor Xa concentration. Only a minor prolongation of the delay is predicted for factor Xa concentrations in the nanomolar range, but for factor Xa concentrations in the 1-10 pM range, the enhanced decay will cause considerable delays. Simultaneous reduction of the turnover rate of prothrombinase results in much larger delays for the entire range of factor Xa concentrations.
Vascular anticoagulant alpha (VAC alpha, annexin V) is a member of the family of calcium and phospholipid binding proteins, the annexins. The binding properties of VAC alpha to phospholipid bilayers were studied by ellipsometry. Adsorption was calcium-dependent and completely reversible upon calcium depletion. Half-maximal adsorptions to phospholipid bilayers consisting of 100, 20, 5, and 1% dioleoyl-phosphatidylserine (DOPS) supplemented with dioleoyl-phosphatidylcholine (DOPC) were reached at Ca2+ concentrations of 0.04, 0.22, 1.5, and 8.6 mM. These surfaces all showed the same maximal adsorption of 0.22 +/- 0.01 micrograms of VAC alpha/cm2 (mean +/- S.D.). The adsorption to bilayers containing more than 10% DOPS was independent of VAC alpha concentrations in the range of 0.5-100 nM. Dissociation constants for VAC alpha binding to these surfaces were estimated to be below 2 x 10(-10) M. No adsorption was observed on pure DOPC bilayers at a Ca2+ concentration of 3 mM. The ability to mediate VAC alpha binding to 20% DOPS/80% DOPC bilayers was highly specific for Ca2+. The use of other divalent cations resulted in decreased binding in the order Cd2+ greater than Zn2+ greater than Mn2+ greater than Co2+ greater than Ba2+ greater than Mg2+. Zinc ions had a synergistic effect on Ca2(+)-dependent VAC alpha binding. The Ca2+ concentration needed for half-maximal binding to cardiolipin, dioleoyl-phosphatidylglycerol, DOPS, phosphatidylinositol, phosphatidic acid, dioleoyl-phosphatidylethanolamine, and sphingomyelin increased in that order. Adsorption was independent of the overall surface charge of the phospholipid membrane.
Plasma activities of creatine kinase (CK) and alpha-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (HBD) were measured after permanent coronary artery occlusion in the dog. Cumulative release of enzymes in plasma was calculated from these data by using a previously validated two-compartment model for circulating enzymes. Regional myocardial ischemia was measured by injection of radiolabeled microspheres. After 48 hours, the dogs were killed, and a detailed map of left ventricular enzyme activity was obtained from 108 tissue samples. Cumulative release into plasma of CK and HBD was 96 +/- 20% and 112 +/- 26%, respectively, of the total activities depleted from the heart (mean +/- SD, n = 11). The scatter in these values is inherent to the calculations, and it is concluded that both enzymes are recovered completely in plasma and, thus, can be used as quantitative markers of injury. Discrepancies between this result and earlier reports on the recovery of CK are only partly apparent and can be explained partly by underestimation of the elimination rate of CK from plasma, irregardless of tissue edema and incomplete extraction of enzyme activity from tissue.
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To determine the ability of initial ST segment elevation and depression to predict infarct size limitation by thrombolytic therapy, data were analyzed in 721 patients with acute myocardial infarction who were admitted to a randomized, placebo-controlled study of intravenous recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator. Patients with QRS duration of 120 msec or more or with previous history of myocardial infarction were excluded, leaving 322 in the treatment and 333 in the placebo group. Cumulative 72-hour release of alpha-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase and global ejection fraction as well as left ventricular wall motion derived from angiography were used as independent measures of infarct size. Electrocardiograms obtained at admission, 6 hours after start of therapy, and before discharge were analyzed. All ST measurements were made by hand at the J point and 60 msec after the J point. Patients with high ST segment elevation at admission (i.e., sum of ST elevation at 60 msec after the J point was 20 mm or more) had significantly larger infarction and higher hospital mortality when compared with those with lower (less than 20 mm) ST elevation. Reciprocal ST segment depression also showed a linear relation with infarct size and mortality, independent from ST elevation, both in anterior and inferior myocardial infarction. The sum of deviations measured at the J point and 60 msec after the J point differed significantly, especially in anterior myocardial infarction at admission (mean, 16 +/- 9 versus 23 +/- 11 mm). The prognostic value of one measurement was not, however, superior over the other. Treatment with recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator was most effective in those with large ST deviations at admission, but patients with anterior infarction and smaller ST shifts also appeared to benefit from therapy. Results in individual patients were variable, and the overall correlation of initial ST shifts with enzymatic infarct size was rather low. In conclusion, the present study shows that the magnitude of initial ST elevation and also of reciprocal ST depression in the admission electrocardiogram is valuable for the management and assessment of thrombolytic therapy in patients with acute myocardial infarction.
The transport time of enzyme from heart to plasma was studied in two experimental models. First, the enzyme alanine aminotransferase was slowly infused into the left ventricular wall in open-chest dogs. The half-life for the washout of alanine aminotransferase activity into plasma was 20 +/- 4 minutes (mean +/- SEM, n = 8) and was not different in ischemic and normally perfused tissue. From measurements of arteriovenous differences in alanine aminotransferase activity and left ventricular blood flow, it was concluded that 77 +/- 14% of total enzyme washout from ischemic tissue occurred by direct entry into the bloodstream. The corresponding value for the vascular permeability-surface area product was 264 +/- 55 ml.kg-1.hr-1. For a second model, we studied myocardial enzyme release into plasma after abrupt heart injury induced by 10 minutes of calcium-free coronary perfusion followed by reintroduction of calcium (calcium-paradox mechanism). The half-life for the release into plasma was 1.9 +/- 0.2 hours (mean +/- SEM, n = 6) and was again not influenced by sustained ischemia. Slower washout, as observed for this second model, is consistent with increased interstitial protein space and corresponds to a permeability--surface area product between 135 and 285 ml.kg-1.hr-1. These results were used to calculate the time course of cellular enzyme leakage from the rate of enzyme release into plasma in various forms of heart injury. Significant shifts between the time curves of evolving cellular injury and enzyme release into plasma are observed after 2 hours of ischemia followed by coronary reperfusion, but not after permanent ischemia.
Pathological elevations of the plasma activities of liver enzymes are not simply related to the quantitative release of such enzymes from the liver. Several enzymatic indices, such as the well-known de Ritis quotient, may be determined by differences in the time course of hepatic enzyme release, rather than reflecting true differences in the released quantities of various enzymes. A more quantitative use of enzymatic data is hampered by the fact that the fractional catabolic rate constants for the elimination of enzyme activities from plasma are unknown. In the present study, three of these constants are estimated by comparison of the time-activity curves in plasma with the corresponding curve of a simultaneously released, more slowly eliminated reference enzyme. This method can be applied in patients with an acute short period of hepatic enzyme release. Values obtained for the cytosolic isoforms of lactate dehydrogenase, AST and ALT are: fractional catabolic rate constant (lactate dehydrogenase isoenzyme 5) = 0.13 +/- 0.01 hr-1, fractional catabolic rate constant (cytosolic AST) = 0.088 +/- 0.016 hr-1 and fractional catabolic rate constant (cytosolic ALT) = 0.034 +/- 0.004 hr-1 (mean +/- S.E., n = 10). These values are much higher than the apparent disappearance rate constants, because of extravascular return of activity and tailing release of enzymes during the major part of the elimination phase. It is shown that these results are consistent with earlier published data on the disappearance rates from plasma of lactate dehydrogenase, AST and ALT after acute liver injury. Cumulative release of various cytosolic enzymes occurred in proportion to the corresponding activities in human control livers.
One hundred fourteen sedentary volunteers (34 +/- 8 years) took part in an endurance training study to be completed after 18-20 months with a marathon. Ultimately, 60 males and 18 females achieved that goal. The training program, carefully supervised, was divided into three periods with a maximum of 45-, 70-, and 110-km week training volume and concluded with a performance race of 15, 25, and 42.2 km, respectively. Three days before and 3 and 5 days after each race, 35 subjects were selected to perform a progressive treadmill test and the remaining subjects participated in field tests of 400 and 1000 m. A significant decrease in half-life time of CK enzyme plasma activity after running long distances in the course of the study from 20 h to 13 h was observed. Based on plasma enzyme activity and supposing that the total enzyme content left the muscle fiber, the estimated amount of muscle damage was found to be small. A gender difference in plasma enzyme activity increase (females demonstrated a lower increase) occurred only after the marathon.
Myocardial injury after aorto-coronary bypass surgery was estimated in 72 patients from total release into plasma of cardiac creatine kinase (CK-MB) and alpha-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (HBD). Activities of CK-MB were determined both by immuno-inhibition of CK-M units and by ion-exchange chromatography. After correction for per-operative hemolysis, the estimates based on HBD were in agreement with the estimates based on CK-MB as determined by the ion-exchange method. Both enzymes indicated a mean loss of only about 2 gram-equivalents of myocardium. Such minimal injury was also found in metabolic and ultrastructural studies of myocardial biopsies in the same patients, as reported earlier. However, approximately two-fold larger estimates of injury were obtained from plasma CK-MB activities determined by immuno-inhibition. This apparent extra release of CK-MB runs parallel with massive release of CK-activity from skeletal muscle damaged by surgery. Taking also into account the various calculation methods used by different authors, overestimates as large as 10-20 gram-equivalents of lost myocardium after uncomplicated bypass surgery, as published in the literature, can be explained.
In a randomized study on early intracoronary thrombolytic therapy in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI), serial plasma enzyme activities were measured to analyze the rate of enzyme appearance in plasma with reference to treatment allocation, area at risk, and infarct size. Cumulative activities of alpha-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (HBDH) appearing in plasma in the first 24 hours (Q24), 48 hours (Q48), and 72 hours (Q72) were calculated to obtain infarct size (= Q72) and rate of HBDH appearance in plasma (= Q24/Q72). Analyzed on the basis of "intention to treat" in 448 patients with AMI, the mean Q24/Q72 value (+/- SEM) was 0.653 +/- 0.011 in 230 patients receiving thrombolytic therapy; this value was significantly (p less than 0.001) higher than that observed in 218 patients receiving conventional therapy (0.504 +/- 0.012). In the thrombolysis group Q24/Q72 was independent of infarct size, whereas in the control group Q24/Q72 was negatively correlated with infarct size (r = -0.26; p less than 0.001). Plotted against the sum of ST segment elevations at admission (sigma ST) mean Q24 values were similar in both treatment groups, but mean Q48 and especially Q72 values were larger in the control group than in the thrombolysis group. We conclude that: (1) in reperfused infarctions the time course for development of infarct is accelerated in comparison to unreperfused infarcts; (2) this accelerated process of necrosis lasts about 40 to 50 hours, a duration that is hardly influenced by infarct size; and (3) the reperfusion-induced acceleration of enzyme release resembles the reoxygenation-induced enzyme release from anoxic hearts.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Myocardial activities of several enzymes were measured in infarcted and non-infarcted areas of heart sections obtained from eight patients who died after acute myocardial infarction. Similar data were obtained from four patients with cardiovascular disorders who died from causes other than myocardial infarction and from six patients without previously known heart disease. It was found that both non-infarcted and infarcted tissue samples contained considerably altered enzyme activities. This finding explains the low correlations between enzymatic and histological estimates of infarct size previously reported. However, when the residual myocardial activities of different enzymes were compared with each other, a close correlation was found between creatine kinase, alpha-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase, and aspartate aminotransferase. It appears that the pathological changes in the myocardial activities of these enzymes may be explained by the phenomenon of diluted myocardium. This indicates that myocardial injury, as estimated from plasma enzyme activities, may still be expressed meaningfully in gram equivalents of healthy myocardium.
The activity of alpha-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase, creatine kinase, creatine kinase MB and aspartate aminotransferase was measured on serial plasma samples from patients with acute myocardial infarction. The study was part of a multicentre randomised trial of the effect of thrombolytic treatment in the acute phase of acute myocardial infarction. The applicability and comparability of enzyme tests for the estimation of myocardial injury were studied in 76 control patients and 74 patients treated with streptokinase. Treatment with streptokinase caused a considerable acceleration of enzyme release after acute myocardial infarction, both in patients with persistent coronary occlusion and in those with successful reperfusion. But this changed pattern of enzyme release did not affect the rate of enzyme elimination from plasma or the released proportions of different enzymes. Thus the assessment of infarct size by measurement of these enzyme activities can also be applied to patients treated with streptokinase. Moreover, the enzymes measured in the present study are all equally valid markers of myocardial injury.