| Abstract: | Recent investigations suggest that microthrombi formation in bowel capillaries could be a determinant factor in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) pathogenesis. To evaluate the implication of fibrinolysis in these thrombotic events, we analysed plasmatic values of physiologic activators, effectors and inhibitors of fibrinolysis. In a sample of 112 IBD patients we found decreased plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 (PAI-1:Ag) levels, a finding which has not been reported to date: 8.8±1.1 ng/mL (mean±SEM) versus 17.8±1.1 ng/mL in controls (p<0.0001). Urokinase-type plasminogen activator (u-PA:Ag) from patients with inflammatory activity was decreased: 0.41±0.03 ng/mL in active disease versus 0.52±0.02 ng/mL in inactive disease (p=0.01) and the same applied to patients with Crohn's disease (CD) (0.38±0.03 ng/mL) with respect to ulcerative colitis (UC) patients (0.52±0.025 ng/mL), p=0.001. Levels of plasminogen, alpha 2 antiplasmin and tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA:Ag) showed no differences with respect to the controls. With the exception of u-PA:Ag, there were no differences between UC and CD. These results demonstrate plasmatic disturbances in the flbrinolytic system of IBD patients. |
