A Native Whole Blood Thrombin Generation Assay Allows Discrimination of Whole Blood Samples with FVIII Levels below 1%

Monitoring the correction of abnormal bleeding tendencies during the treatment of patients with hemostatic disorders is essential to evaluate success of therapy. While single clotting factor assays provide valuable information, global coagulation assays are desirable to better understand the overall hemostatic condition of patients. In Hemophilia A, severity of the clotting defect is traditionally evaluated by determining FVIII activity using chromogenic or clotting assays. Evaluation of thrombin generation in plasma samples for the assessment of bleeding tendencies in hemophilic patients has been suggested. Discriminating between samples with FVIII levels below 1%, however, has been challenging using FVIII activity and thrombin generation assays. We previously reported a native whole blood thrombin generation assay (nWB-TGA) that uses recalcification of whole blood samples without the addition of tissue factor to initiate clotting. We have shown that this assay is sensitive to varying levels of FVIII in vitroand to platelet targeted FVIII gene therapy in a murine model of Hemophilia A. The objective of the present study was to determine if the nWB-TGA can be used to monitor Hemophilia A patients during FVIII therapy and if this assay allows discrimination of whole blood samples with FVIII levels below 1%.

Using the nWB-TGA we evaluated thrombin generation in a severe hemophilia A patient carrying an intron 22 inversion. Numerous data points were obtained from 15 different FVIII infusions, each targeting a FVIII level of 50%. Samples collected at least 72 hours (hrs) post infusion (>6 half-lives, calculated FVIII levels <1%) significantly differed from healthy control samples in all thrombin generation parameters. Compared with healthy controls (6.9 ± 0.6 min; mean ± SEM) the hemophilic patient had a lag time (LT) of 24.8 ± 3.4 min. Peak time in healthy controls and the patient was 10.1 ± 1 min and 35 ± 5 min, peak thrombin was 528 ± 78 nM and 124 ± 20 nM, endogenous thrombin potential (ETP) was 1949 ± 117 nM and 1201 ± 50 nM, and thrombin generation rate was 196 ± 58 nM/min and 21 ± 6 nM/min, respectively. While previous studies on thrombin generation in plasma samples mainly reported on differences in peak thrombin and ETP, spiking of hemophilic blood with increasing concentration of recombinant FVIII in vitro revealed that the LT was FVIII dose dependent in our assay. When hemophilic blood was reconstituted with FVIII to a 2%, 5% and 50% level, the LT was 22.5 ± 1.6 min, 16.1 ± 1.7 min and 8.8 ± 0.6 min, respectively. All other thrombin generation parameters were FVIII dose dependent as well. A FVIII dependent LT was also apparent in vivo, when we monitored the patient after FVIII infusions. LT was 6.4 ± 0.2 min at 15 min, 8.5 ± 0.4 min at 24 hrs, and 13.8 ± 0.5 min at 48 hrs post FVIII treatment. We identified the lack of tissue factor as being key to a FVIII dose dependent LT. At all post infusion time points the LT was approximately 5 min when tissue factor was added to the assay. To our surprise, looking at specific time points equal to or greater than 72 hrs post infusion enabled us to discriminate these samples based on the LT (72 hrs: LT= 13.0 ± 0.6 min, 84 hrs: LT= 19.5 ± 0.8 min, 96 hrs: 36.0 ± 4.4 min). The ETP, commonly used as a variable parameter in previous thrombin generation reports, however, was not different among 72, 84 and 96 hrs post FVIII infusion samples. Strikingly, FVIII activity determined by chromogenic and one stage clotting assay was below detection limit (1% FVIII:C) in samples obtained 72 hrs post infusion or later. Thus, the patient in our study displayed considerable thrombin generation determined by the nWB-TGA at post FVIII infusion time points when FVIII levels were considered undetectable with currently available technology. Our data suggest that the different LT observed in 72, 84 and 94 hrs post infusion samples is possibly related to differences in residual FVIII levels below 1%.

In conclusion, the nWB-TGA provides a useful tool to monitor efficacy of FVIII replacement therapy and might assist in tailoring individual FVIII treatment regimens. This close to physiological whole blood assay allows distinguishing blood samples with FVIII levels below 1% in vivo, and might help to explain the heterogeneity in bleeding phenotypes observed in severe hemophilia A patients. This assay may also be useful in assessing therapeutic benefit of “long acting” FVIII or FIX products.