Evidence of Hemolysis in the Initiation of Hemostasis

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Abstract
Some red blood cells in an in vivo hemostatic plug fixed 1 min. after transection of a small mesenteric arteriole in a guinea pig were found to display reduced electron density when compared to normal appearing red blood cells. Hemolysis was quantitated biochemically in circulating blood drawn by heart puncture and in blood shed from transected mesenteric arterioles and it was established that hemolysis does occur in shed blood. Experiments indicate that some component of the coagulation mechanisms is responsible for the evolution of ADP which, along with thrombin, can bring about platelet cohesion. Hemolysis was shown to be a non-specific reaction that takes place whenever red blood cells come in contact with a foreign surface and appears to be unrelated to the activation of the coagulation mechanisms and ATP degradation. It was postulated that hemolysis may be the mechanism whereby both ADP and partial thromboplastin are released from red blood cells in the initial stages of hemostasis.