Pipes Implicated in Clogged Drains

For many of us, the ASH annual meeting is the biggest meeting of the year. At ASH, we’re all about blood. The ASH journal is Blood, hearts are important because they pump blood, and as we immerse ourselves in five days of bloody, exciting science, we’ll also be exploring the interplay between blood and blood vessels. Blood vessels are key active participants in normal, and pathologic, blood physiology. Furthermore, interference with this connection may be able to influence its outcome. Starting with today’s Scientific Sessions, this year’s ASH annual meeting gives us the opportunity to eavesdrop on this fascinating exchange.

The blood vessel wall and thrombosis is the topic of today’s Scientific Committee on Thrombosis and Vascular Biology session, held from 8:00 – 9:45 a.m. Dr. John Griffin will moderate this session which showcases talks by three outstanding speakers: Drs. Shaun Coughlin, Nigel Mackman, and Denisa Wagner.

Dr. Coughlin’s pioneering contributions originally opened up the entire field of proteinactivated receptor (PAR) research, and he continues to shape the field with new discoveries. Recently, his group described a mechanism by which PAR1 shedding occurs, representing a novel mechanism by which G-protein coupled receptors might be modulated. Dr. Coughlin’s discussions of the role of PARs in thrombosis add another dimension to the vessel-hemostasis conversation, and today’s talk should be no exception.

Dr. Mackman has contributed significantly to our understanding of the involvement of the tissue factor-thrombin pathway in cardiac ischemia-reperfusion injury. He has also published compelling work demonstrating the association of sepsis with systemic activation of coagulation and an excessive inflammatory response. In a mouse endotoxemia model, Dr. Mackman recently demonstrated that a combination of thrombin inhibition with hirudin and PAR-2 deficiency reduced inflammation and mortality. Today, Dr. Mackman will discuss his perspectives on the important role of tissue factor in inflammation in thrombosis.

Dr. Wagner will bring us back to inflammation in the vascular microenvironment, where the alteration of endothelial cell phenotypes favors a procoagulant state, activated platelets play an inflammatory role, and micro-particles participate in the cascade of hemostatic and inflammatory interactions. Dr. Wagner has contributed significantly to this model of inflammation and thrombosis, particularly on the role of circulating P-selectin and leukocyte microparticles. We anticipate she will update us with the latest pictures of what these microparticles are capable.

We would be remiss in our coverage of the vessel-coagulation connection without mentioning Barbara Furie’s talk at today’s Scientific Committee on Hemostasis session at 4:15 p.m. Dr. Furie will present her group’s work on in vivo thrombus formation at sites of vascular injury. Using intravital microscopy, the Furies have been able to visualize the dynamics of thrombus formation, and in so doing analyze many aspects of the vascular wall-thrombus interaction. This system has been used to localize tissue factor during thrombus formation, to study the kinetics of platelet activation and P-selectin expression after vascular injury, to analyze leukocyte rolling on arterial thrombi, and much more.

We expect each of these talks to present a vivid depiction of the dynamic interaction between vessels and coagulation, performances not to be missed.