CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Thrombotic events are the major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide, with venous thromboembolism, heart attack and strokes being responsible for one in every four deaths. Effective antithrombotic therapy has long been the basis of treatment for venous/arterial thromboembolic events and has reduced mortality rates from 30% to 3-8%. Currently, there are many antithrombotic agents that can selectively interrupt pathological thrombin generation and the exaggerated platelet response, thus preventing the consequent thrombosis. Plants are abundant sources of novel bioactive compounds and, in particular flavonoids, a large group of naturally occurring compounds isolated from certain plants, have been found to inhibit thrombus formation. This effect is most evident in compounds that contain a quercetin backbone. Flaveria bidentis (L.) Kuntze, among others, biosynthesizes quercetin 3,7,3?,4?-tetrasulfate isolated (QTS) and quercetin quercetin 3-acetyl-7,3?,4?-trisulfate (ATS), the quercetin derivatives with the highest degree of sulfation known so far [3]. Preliminary studies in our laboratory showed that QTS, and to a lesser extent ATS, possess important anticoagulant, antiplatelet and profibrinolytic activities. New molecular targets are being investigated to find the ideal next generation of antithrombotic agents without (or with minimal) impact on hemostasis and bleeding risk. It would be desirable to develop an antithrombotic drug capable of simultaneously inhibiting the activation of coagulation factors and of platelets. We designed this study to determine the ?in vivo? effects of QTS, using a previously reported experimental model of thrombosis in C57BL/6 mice. All experimental procedures were performed in accordance with the NIH Guide for Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.