The Hyperfibrinolytic State of Mice with Combined Thrombin-activatable Fibrinolysis Inhibitor (TAFI) and Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor-1 Gene Deficiency is Critically Dependent on TAFI Deficiency

Background: Mice with single gene deficiency of thrombin-activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (TAFI) or plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) have an enhanced fibrinolytic capacity.

Objectives: To unravel the function and relevance of both antifibrinolytic proteins through the generation and characterization of mice with combined TAFI and PAI-1 gene deficiency.

Results: Mating of TAFI knockout (KO) mice with PAI-1 KO mice resulted in the production of TAFI/PAI-1 double-KO mice that were viable, were fertile, and developed normally. In a tail vein bleeding model, the bleeding time and hemoglobin content of the TAFI/PAI-1 double-KO mice did not deviate significantly from those of the single-KO mice or of the wild-type (WT) counterparts. Interestingly, in ex vivo rotational thromboelastometry measurements with whole blood samples, TAFI KO mice and TAFI/PAI-1 double-KO mice were more sensitive to fibrinolytic activation with tissue-type plasminogen activator than WT or PAI-1 KO mice. This enhanced fibrinolytic capacity was confirmed in vivo in a mouse thromboembolism model, as shown by decreased fibrin deposition in the lungs of TAFI KO mice and TAFI/PAI-1 double-KO mice as compared with WT or PAI-1 KO mice.

Conclusions: TAFI gene inactivation predominantly contributes to the increased fibrinolytic capacity of TAFI and PAI-1 double-gene-deficient mice, as observed in some basic thrombosis models.