The kinetics of baboon fibrinogen adsorption to polymers: In vitro and in vivo studies

Abstract

Fibrinogen adsorption on polymers from blood may mediate or potentiate thrombosis because of its involvement in both the intrinsic clotting system and the formation of platelet aggregates. While the kinetics of fibrinogen adsorption from plasma in vitro have previously been found to be very different on polar and nonpolar surfaces [T. A Horbett, “The kinetics of adsorption of plasma proteins to a series of hydrophilic-hydrophobic copolymers,” ACS Org. Coat. Plas. Chem., 40, 642–646 (1979)] the significance of this difference with respect to thrombogenesis in vivo has not been clarified. In this study, the kinetics of deposition of baboon ¹²⁵I fibrinogen from plasma in vitro or from blood in vivo on a series of polymers was measured. The polymers chosen for this study had previously been found to have a large range in surface polarity and reactivity in the in vivo baboon shunt model. The kinetics of fibrinogen adsorption in vitro were observed to be of three types, depending on the polymer: (1) high initial adsorption decreasing to a lower steady state value; (2) constant throughout the time course; (3) low initial adsorption rising steadily to a plateau value. In vivo, fibrinogen deposition kinetics were of two types: (1) low, constant deposition throughout the time course, independent of heparinization; (2) low deposition initially followed by a second phase of greatly increased deposition (probably as fibrin) which was prevented or greatly decreased by heparinizing the animals. Polymers for which fibrinogen adsorption increased to a plateau in vitro were found to have a heparin inhibitable second phase of enhanced in vivo fibrinogen deposition. These polymers also have been found in previous studies to enhance the rate of platelet destruction when used as in vivo shunts on baboons. Conversely, most polymers with high initial in vitro fibrinogen adsorption followed by a decrease had low fibrinogen deposition behavior in vivo and were also minimally destructive of platelets. The adsorption kinetics of fibrinogen to polymers from blood in vivo and in vitro and the consumption of platelets in vivo induced by the polymers all vary with polymer polarity. More polar polymers had in vitro fibrinogen kinetics characterized by a rise to a plateau, in vivo fibrinogen deposition characterized by a second stage of great increase inhibitable by heparin, and enhanced platelet consumption. The correlation of three separate indicators of surface thrombogenicity with surface polarity suggests that more polar materials may be more thrombogenic because of an influence on the way in which fibrinogen interacts with these surfaces.