4D intravital imaging studies identify platelets as the predominant cellular procoagulant surface in a mouse hemostasis model

• 4D intravital imaging identifies platelets as the functionally dominant procoagulant surface during hemostatic plug formation.

• Fibrin accumulation and localization in hemostatic plugs are the result of concomitant formation and degradation.

Interplay between platelets, coagulation factors, endothelial cells (ECs), and fibrinolytic factors is necessary for effective hemostatic plug formation. This study describes a 4-dimensional (4D) imaging platform to visualize and quantify hemostatic plug components in mice with high spatiotemporal resolution. Fibrin accumulation after laser-induced vascular injury was observed at the platelet plug–EC interface, controlled by the antagonistic balance between fibrin generation and breakdown. We observed less fibrin accumulation in mice expressing low levels of tissue factor or F12^−/−mice compared with controls, whereas increased fibrin accumulation, including on the vasculature adjacent to the platelet plug, was observed in plasminogen-deficient mice or wild-type mice treated with tranexamic acid. Phosphatidylserine (PS), a membrane lipid critical for the assembly of coagulation factors, was first detected at the platelet plug–EC interface, followed by exposure across the endothelium. Impaired PS exposure resulted in a significant reduction in fibrin accumulation in cyclophilin D^−/−mice. Adoptive transfer studies demonstrated a key role for PS exposure on platelets, and to a lesser degree on ECs, in fibrin accumulation during hemostatic plug formation. Together, these studies suggest that (1) platelets are the functionally dominant procoagulant cellular surface, and (2) plasmin is critical for limiting fibrin accumulation at the site of a forming hemostatic plug.