Thromb Haemost 1994; 72(03): 381-386
DOI: 10.1055/s-0038-1648875
Original Article
Schattauer GmbH Stuttgart

Effects of the Synthetic Thrombin Inhibitor Argatroban on Fibrin- or Clot-Incorporated Thrombin: Comparison with Heparin and Recombinant Hirudin

Christopher N Berry
The Pre-Clinical Research Department Synthélabo Recherche (L.E.R.S.), Bagneux, France
,
Christine Girardot
The Pre-Clinical Research Department Synthélabo Recherche (L.E.R.S.), Bagneux, France
,
Catherine Lecoffreo
The Pre-Clinical Research Department Synthélabo Recherche (L.E.R.S.), Bagneux, France
,
Catherine Lunven
The Pre-Clinical Research Department Synthélabo Recherche (L.E.R.S.), Bagneux, France
› Author Affiliations
Further Information

Publication History

Received 18 November 1993

Accepted after resubmission 18 May 1994

Publication Date:
25 July 2018 (online)

Summary

The inhibitory effects of argatroban on clot- or fibrin-bound human thrombin were studied using the thrombin-specific chromogenic substrate S2238 (200 μM). These effects were compared to those of recombinant hirudin (rHV2 Lys 47) and the heparin/antithrombin III complex. Argatroban concentration-dependently inhibited the cleavage of S2238 by a thrombin solution, which had been titrated to give the same change in OD405 nm as fibrin-bound thrombin, with an IC50 of 1.1 μM with 90% inhibition at 8 μM. rHV2 Lys 47 and heparin had IC50 values of 1.2 nM and 0.003 U/ml respectively under these conditions. However, when the compounds were tested against fibrin-bound thrombin, argatroban had an IC50 of 2.8 μM with 65% inhibiton at 8 μM, whereas rHV2 Lys 47 had an IC50 of 23 nM (with only 56% inhibition at 200 nM), and heparin had an IC50 of 0.5 α 0.38 U/ml (with only 58% inhibition at 5 U/ml); i. e. the two compounds were 19 and 168 times less active against fibrin-bound thrombin than against thrombin in solution. The differences between the inhibitory effects of the compounds against thrombin bound to a plasma clot were even more striking in that the IC50 of argatroban was increased from 1.1 (vs. thrombin in solution) to 2.7 μM, while, although rHV2 Lys 47 and heparin had IC50 values of 2.8 nM and 0.004 U/ml against thrombin in solution, they had little (32% inhibition by 4 pM rHV2 Lys 47) or no effect (even at 5.0 U/ml heparin) against the amidolytic activity of a plasma clot. We conclude that argatroban could present advantages over hirudin and heparin in the treatment of pathologies where the enzymatic activity of clot-bound thrombin may play a significant role.

 
  • References

  • 1 Heras M, Cheseboro JH, Penny WJ, Bailey KR, Badimon L, Fuster V. Effects of thrombin inhibition on the development of acute platelet-thrombus deposition during angioplasty in pigs: heparin versus recombinant hirudin, a specific thrombin inhibitor. Circulation 1989; 79: 657-665
  • 2 Kaiser B, Simon A, Markwardt F. Antithrombotic effects of recombinant hirudin in experimental angioplasty and intravascular thrombolysis. Thromb Haemost 1990; 63: 44-47
  • 3 Kelly AB, Marzee UM, Krupski W, Bass A, Cadroy Y, Hanson SR, Harker LA. Hirudin interruption of heparin-resistant arterial thrombus formation in baboons. Blood 1991; 77: 1006-1012
  • 4 Klement P, Borm A, Hirsh J, Maraganore JM, Wilson G, Weitz J. The effects of thrombin inhibitors on tissue plasminogen activator induced thrombolysis in a rat model. Thromb Haemost 1992; 68: 64-68
  • 5 Gulba DC, Barthels M, Westhoff-Bleck M, Jost S, Rafflenbeul W, Daniel W, Hecker H, Lichtlen PR. Increased thrombin levels during thrombolytic therapy in acute myocardial infarction - relevance for the success of therapy. Circulation 1991; 83: 937-944
  • 6 Mirshahi M, Soria J, Soria C, Faivre R, Lu H, Courtney M, Roitsch C, Tripier D, Caen J. Evaluation of the inhibition by heparin and hirudin of coagulation activation during r-t-PA-induced thrombolysis. Blood 1989; 74: 1025-1030
  • 7 Weitz JI, Hudoda M, Masel D, Maraganore J, Hirsh J. Clot bound thrombin is protected from inhibition by heparin-antithrombin III but is susceptible to inactivation by antithrombin III independent inhibitors. J Clin Invest 1990; 86: 385-391
  • 8 Kettner C, Shaw E. D-Phe-Pro-Arg Ch2Cl. A selective affinity label for thrombin. Thromb Res 1979; 14: 969-973
  • 9 Naski MC, Fenton JWII, Maraganore JM, Olsen ST, Shafer JA. The COOH-terminal domain of hirudin. J Biol Chem 1990; 265: 13484-13489
  • 10 Okamoto S, Hijikata A, Kikumoto R, Tonomara S, Hara H, Ninomiya K, Maruyama A, Sugano M, Tamao Y. Potent Inhibition of thrombin by the newly synthesized arginine derivative No. 805.. The importance of stereo-structure of its hydrophobic carboxamide portion. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 1981; 101: 440-406
  • 11 Kikumoto R, Tamao Y, Tezuka T, Tonomura S, Hara H, Ninomiya K, Hiji-kata A, Okamoto S. Selective inhibition of thrombin by (2R,4R)-4-Methyl-1-[N2-[(3-methyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-8-quinolinyl)sulfonyl]-arginyl]-2-pi-peridinecarboxylic acid. Biochemistry 1984; 23: 85-90
  • 12 Kumada T, Abiko Y. Comparative study of heparin and a synthetic thrombin inhibitor n° 805 (MD-805) in experimental antithrombin Ill-deficient animals. Thrombosis Res 1981; 24: 285-298
  • 13 Hara H, Tamao Y, Kikumoto R, Okamoto S. Effect of a synthetic thrombin inhibitor MCI-9038 on experimental models of disseminated intravascular coagulation in rabbits. Thromb Haemos 1987; 57: 165-70
  • 14 Imura Y, Stassen J-M, Collen D. Comparative antithrombotic effects of heparin, recombinant hirudin and argatroban in a hamster femoral vein platelet-rich mural thrombosis model. J Pharm Exp Ther 1992; 261: 895-898
  • 15 Morishita K, Wada M, Kumada T, Tanaka T, Tomikawa M, Iwamoto M. Effect of ticlopidine and other antithrombotics on the venous thrombosis induced by endothelial damage of jugular vein in rats. Thrombosis Res 1991; 63: 373-374
  • 16 Matsukura H, Uzawa S, Takeda H, Tanabe T. Experimental extracorporeal circulation with a synthetic thrombin inhibitor, MD-805, without heparin. J Jap Assoc Thorac Surg 1983; 31: 1377-1382
  • 17 Jang IK, Gold HK, Ziskind AA, Leinbach RC, Fallon JT, Collen D. Prevention of platelet-rich arterial thrombosis by selective thrombin inhibition. Circulation 1990; 81: 219-225
  • 18 Fujioka K. The effect of MD-805 on experimental acute arterial thrombosis in relation to vasoactive prostanoids (TXA2 and PGI2). J Jap Coll Angiol 1989; 29: 57-64
  • 19 Eidt JF, Allison P, Noble S, Ashton J, Golino P, Mcnatt J, Buja LM, Wil-lerson JT. Thrombin is an important mediator of platelet aggregation in ste-nosed canine coronary arteries with endothelial injury. J Clin Invest 1989; 84: 13-27
  • 20 Tamao Y, Yamamoto T, Kikumoto R, Hara H, Itoh J, Hirata T, Mineo K, Okamoto S. Effect of a selective thrombin inhibitor MCI-9038 on fibrinolysis in vitro and in vivo. Thromb Haemos 1986; 56: 28-34
  • 21 Jang I-K, Gold HK, Leinbach RC, Fallon JT, Collen D. In vivo thrombin inhibition enhances and sustains arterial recanalisation with recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator. Circulation Research 1990; 67: 1552-1561
  • 22 Schneider J. Heparin and the thrombin inhibitor argatroban enhance fibrinolysis by infused or bolus-injected saruplase (r-scu-PA) in rabbit femoral artery thrombosis. Thrombosis Res 1991; 64: 677-689
  • 23 Yasuda T, Gold HK, Yaoita H, Leinbach RC, Guerrero JL, Jang IK, Holt R, Fallon JT, Collen D. Comparative effects of aspirin, a synthetic thrombin inhibitor and a monoclonal antiplatelet glycoprotein Ilb/IIIa antibody on coronary artery reperfusion, reocclusion and bleeding with recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator in a canine preparation. J Am Coll Cardiol 1990; 16: 714-722
  • 24 Fitzgerald DJ, Fitzgerald GA. Role of thrombin and thromboxane A2 in reocclusion following coronary thrombolysis with tissue-type plasminogen activator. Proc Natl Acad Sci 1989; 86: 7585-7589
  • 25 Mellot MJ, Connolly TM, York SJ, Bush LR. Prevention of reocclusion by MCI-9038, a thrombin inhibitor, following t-PA-induced thrombolysis in a canine model of femoral arterial thrombosis. Thromb Haemost 1990; 64: 526-534
  • 26 Degryse E, Acker M, Defreyn G, Bernat A, Maffrand JP, Roitsch C, Courtney M. Point mutations modyfying the thrombin inhibition kinetics and antithrombotic activitiy in vivo of recombinant hirudin. Prot Eng 1989; 2: 459-465
  • 27 Rydel TJ, Ravichandran KG, Tulinsky A, Bode W, Huber R, Roitsch C, Fenton JW. The structure of a complex of recombinant hirudin and human a-thrombin. Science 1990; 249: 277-280
  • 28 Verstraete M. Pharmacotherapeutic aspects of unfractionated and low molecular weight heparins. Drugs 1990; 40: 493-530
  • 29 Van Dorsselaer A, Lepage P, Bitsch F, Whitechurch O, Riehl-Bellon N, Fraisse D, Green B, Roitsch C. Mass spectrometry analyses of recombinant hirudins (7 kDa). Biochemistry 1989; 28: 2949-2956
  • 30 Liu CY, Kaplan KL, Markowitz AH, Nossel HL. The binding of thrombin to fibrin. J Biol Chem 1979; 254: 10421-10425
  • 31 Kaminski M, McDonagh J. Studies on the mechanism of thrombin interaction with fibrin. J Biol Chem 1983; 258: 7627-7630
  • 32 Kaminski M, McDonagh J. Inhibited thrombins: interactions with fibrinogen and fibrin. J Biol Chem 1987; 262: 881-887
  • 33 Berliner LJ, Sugawara Y, Fenton JWII. Human a-thrombin binding to fi-brin-sepharose: evidence for an anionic binding site. Biochemistry 1985; 24: 7005-7009
  • 34 Wilner GD, Danitz MP, Mudd MS, Hsieh KH, Fenton JWII. Selective immobilisation of a-thrombin by surface bound fibrin. J Lab Clin Med 1981; 97: 403-411
  • 35 Fenton JWII, Zabinski MP, Hsieh K, Wilner GD. Thrombin noncovalent-protein binding and fibrin(ogen) recognition. Thromb Haemost 1981; 46: 177
  • 36 Vali Z, Scheraga H. The localization of the binding site on fibrin for the secondary binding site of thrombin. Biochemistry 1988; 27: 1956-1963
  • 37 Haskel EJ, Eisenberg PR, Abendschein DR. Inhibition of concomitant thrombin-mediated fibrin formation enhances clot lysis in whole blood. Blood Coagulation Fibrinolysis 1993; 4: 7-13
  • 38 Naski MC, Shafer JA. α-Thrombin within fibrin clots: inactivation of thrombin by antithrombin-III. Thromb Res 1993; 69: 453-465
  • 39 Talbot MD, Butler KD. Potential clinical uses of thrombin inhibitors. D. N. & P 1990; 3: 357-363
  • 40 Eisenberg PR, Siegel JE, Abendschein DR, Miletich JP. Importance of factor Xa in determining the procoagulant activity of whole-blood clots. J Clin Invest 1993; 91: 1877-1883