Thrombogenicity of Lipoprotein A: Laboratory Study Defining the Prothrombotic Effects of Lipoprotein A

Thrombogenicity of Lp(a) study is a two-centre, open-label, non-randomised, observational laboratory study defining the prothrombotic effects of Lp(a). The study is aimed to answer the question of effect of LP(a) on thrombus formation in patients with previous history of myocardial infarction. Blood thrombogenicity in patients with previous history of myocardial infarction will be studied using the following techniques: i) Badimon chamber: this will assess thrombogenicity of flowing blood. Approximately 50 mls of blood drawn from the antecubital vein, will be passed through the chamber at 37 degrees C. The chamber will contain strips of porcine aorta denuded of its intima layer to promote thrombosis. The resulting thrombus will be fixed in formalin, stained with haematoxylin/eosin and the amount of thrombus quantified using the Image ProPlus software. ii) Scanning electron microscope (SEM): A sample of the resulting thrombus from the above experiment will be gold stained and the thrombus ultrastructure analysed under SEM. This will allow for examination and analysis of the microstructure morphology and characterization of the thrombus. iii) Thromboelastography (TEG) is a comprehensive assay of the overall clotting process, a method used to provide a global assessment of whole blood, coagulation and clot lysis.