Feedback Activation of Factor XI by Thrombin Is Essential for Hemostasis In Vivo.

Abstract 2127

Poster Board II-102

Background: The revised model of coagulation proposes that factor XI (FXI) can be activated by thrombin, which is generated upon activation of the tissue factor (TF) pathway. This concept, however, has not been tested in vivo. A recent study questioned the existence of this feedback loop and suggested that factor XII (FXII) is the sole activator of FXI. Here, we analyze the feedback activation of FXI in plasma and in genetically altered mice. Methods and results: Fluorescence-based assays indicated that particle-bound thrombin caused thrombin generation in plasma both in the absence of TF and in the presence of active site inhibited factor VIIa. Thrombin failed to activate FXII and thrombin generation was almost completely abolished by an anti-FXIa antibody and in FXI-deficient plasma. Surface bound thrombin induced complex formation of FXI, with its major inhibitor C1 inhibitor, even in FXII-deficient plasma in a time and dose dependent manner. To determine if thrombin-driven FXI activation is important for hemostasis in vivo we used TF deficient mice (low TF), which have severely reduced thrombin formation. Low TF mice were crossed with mice deficient in one of the intrinsic pathway proteases FXII, FXI, or FIX. Double deficiency in TF and either FIX or FXI resulted in the intrauterine death of embryos due to hemorrhage. In contrast low TF/FXII-null mice were viable and the bleeding phenotype was unchanged from low TF animals. Conclusions: Surface-bound thrombin, a model for fibrin clot-protected thrombin, generates thrombin in a FXI dependent manner, independently from FXII. In addition to corroborating an amplifying role of FXI in thrombin generation, we provide the first evidence that at low TF levels FXI is essential in generating a sufficient ambient level of thrombin to permit embryonic development.