Protein C Deficiency

2005 ◽  
Vol 95 (5) ◽  
pp. 491-493
Author(s):  
Travis A. Motley ◽  
Clint L. Vanlandingham

We describe the management of a patient who presented to a family-practice clinic with gangrenous digits. After a thorough evaluation, she was found to have protein C deficiency, which produced a hypercoagulable state. Differential diagnosis in the evaluation of the coagulopathic patient with appropriate hematologic tests is briefly discussed. (J Am Podiatr Med Assoc 95(5): 491–493, 2005)

1996 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 155-163 ◽  
Author(s):  
D L Wing-Harkins ◽  
G W Dellinger ◽  
C Lynch ◽  
A A Mihas

Reported below is a case of eosinophilic gastro-enteritis involving the colon, stomach and duodenum in a patient who was also found to have marked hypoalbuminaemia and protein C deficiency due to severe protein-losing enteropathy. The most recent literature is reviewed and the challenging differential diagnosis of the disease is discussed.


Blood ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 70 (2) ◽  
pp. 343-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
KA Bauer ◽  
RD Rosenberg

Abstract Numerous investigators have postulated that a hypercoagulable state exists in humans for a period of time before the development of thrombotic episodes. A clear biochemical definition of the prethrombotic state, however, has proved elusive due in part to the lack of reliable techniques for monitoring pertinent changes in blood coagulability. Based on recent advances in our knowledge of the biochemistry of the coagulation system, a series of highly sensitive and specific immunochemical tools has been developed that can quantitate the activities of various steps of the hemostatic mechanism in vivo at the subnanomolar level. We have established assays for F1+2 and the protein C activation peptide, which measure the cleavage of the prothrombin molecule by factor Xa and the scission of protein C by the thrombin-thrombomodulin complex, respectively. Nossel and coworkers had previously constructed similar assays for fibrinopeptide A (FPA) and fragment B beta 1–42, which monitor the cleavage of fibrinogen by thrombin and the proteolysis of fibrin I by plasmin, respectively. Substantial elevations in the levels of these markers have been found in patients with disseminated intravascular coagulation and many subjects with acute deep venous thrombosis. The F1+2 and FPA assays have been used to demonstrate that significant increments in factor Xa activity but not thrombin activity regularly occur in the blood of nonanticoagulated individuals with congenital deficiencies of antithrombin or protein C. These two disorders are known to be correlated with the subsequent development of thrombosis. Patients with protein C deficiency have also been noted to have significantly reduced plasma levels of protein C activation peptide. By using the immunoassays for FPA and B beta 1–42 in studies of postoperative patients, it has been shown that an imbalance between the procoagulant action of thrombin and the anticoagulant effect of plasmin on fibrin I polymer may induce an acquired thrombotic diathesis. Finally, we have recently demonstrated that prothrombin activation as measured by the F1+2 assay is suppressed by oral anticoagulants in the blood of patients with thrombotic diatheses. These investigations suggest that these assay techniques can be used to improve our understanding of the hypercoagulable state as well as to develop more effective treatment strategies for the prevention of thromboembolic events.


Blood ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 70 (2) ◽  
pp. 343-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
KA Bauer ◽  
RD Rosenberg

Numerous investigators have postulated that a hypercoagulable state exists in humans for a period of time before the development of thrombotic episodes. A clear biochemical definition of the prethrombotic state, however, has proved elusive due in part to the lack of reliable techniques for monitoring pertinent changes in blood coagulability. Based on recent advances in our knowledge of the biochemistry of the coagulation system, a series of highly sensitive and specific immunochemical tools has been developed that can quantitate the activities of various steps of the hemostatic mechanism in vivo at the subnanomolar level. We have established assays for F1+2 and the protein C activation peptide, which measure the cleavage of the prothrombin molecule by factor Xa and the scission of protein C by the thrombin-thrombomodulin complex, respectively. Nossel and coworkers had previously constructed similar assays for fibrinopeptide A (FPA) and fragment B beta 1–42, which monitor the cleavage of fibrinogen by thrombin and the proteolysis of fibrin I by plasmin, respectively. Substantial elevations in the levels of these markers have been found in patients with disseminated intravascular coagulation and many subjects with acute deep venous thrombosis. The F1+2 and FPA assays have been used to demonstrate that significant increments in factor Xa activity but not thrombin activity regularly occur in the blood of nonanticoagulated individuals with congenital deficiencies of antithrombin or protein C. These two disorders are known to be correlated with the subsequent development of thrombosis. Patients with protein C deficiency have also been noted to have significantly reduced plasma levels of protein C activation peptide. By using the immunoassays for FPA and B beta 1–42 in studies of postoperative patients, it has been shown that an imbalance between the procoagulant action of thrombin and the anticoagulant effect of plasmin on fibrin I polymer may induce an acquired thrombotic diathesis. Finally, we have recently demonstrated that prothrombin activation as measured by the F1+2 assay is suppressed by oral anticoagulants in the blood of patients with thrombotic diatheses. These investigations suggest that these assay techniques can be used to improve our understanding of the hypercoagulable state as well as to develop more effective treatment strategies for the prevention of thromboembolic events.


1988 ◽  
Vol 59 (01) ◽  
pp. 018-022 ◽  
Author(s):  
C L Gladson ◽  
I Scharrer ◽  
V Hach ◽  
K H Beck ◽  
J H Griffin

SummaryThe frequency of heterozygous protein C and protein S deficiency, detected by measuring total plasma antigen, in a group (n = 141) of young unrelated patients (<45 years old) with venous thrombotic disease was studied and compared to that of antithrombin III, fibrinogen, and plasminogen deficiencies. Among 91 patients not receiving oral anticoagulants, six had low protein S antigen levels and one had a low protein C antigen level. Among 50 patients receiving oral anticoagulant therapy, abnormally low ratios of protein S or C to other vitamin K-dependent factors were presented by one patient for protein S and five for protein C. Thus, heterozygous Type I protein S deficiency appeared in seven of 141 patients (5%) and heterozygous Type I protein C deficiency in six of 141 patients (4%). Eleven of thirteen deficient patients had recurrent venous thrombosis. In this group of 141 patients, 1% had an identifiable fibrinogen abnormality, 2% a plasminogen abnormality, and 3% an antithrombin III deficiency. Thus, among the known plasma protein deficiencies associated with venous thrombosis, protein S and protein C. deficiencies (9%) emerge as the leading identifiable associated abnormalities.


1990 ◽  
Vol 64 (02) ◽  
pp. 239-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
P H Reitsma ◽  
W te Lintel Hekkert ◽  
E Koenhen ◽  
P A van der Velden ◽  
C F Allaart ◽  
...  

SummaryScreening of restriction erzyme digested DNA from normal and protein C deficient individuals with a variety of probes derived from the protein C locus has revealed the existence of two neutral MspI polymorphism. One polymorphism (MI), which is located ≈7 kb upstream of the protein C gene, has allelic frequencies of 69 and 31%, and was used to exclude extensive gene deletions as a likely cause of type I protein C deficiency in 50% of cases in a panel of 22 families. Furtherrnore, the same polymorphism has been used in 5 doubly affected individuals establishing compound heterozygosity in 3 of these.The second, intragenic, polymorphism (MII) has allelic frequencies of 99 and 1% in the normal population. The frequency of the rare allele of this RFLP was with 7% much higher in a panel of 22 Dutch families with protein C deficiency. Interestingly, in all three probands that were heterozygous for MII the rare allele of MII coincided with a point mutation that leads to a stop codon in amino acid position 306 of the protein C coding sequence. This mutation may account for 14% of the protein C deficient individuals in The Netherlands.


1989 ◽  
Vol 61 (01) ◽  
pp. 144-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Girolami ◽  
P Simioni ◽  
A R Lazzaro ◽  
I Cordiano

SummaryDeficiency of protein S has been associated with an increased risk of thrombotic disease as already shown for protein C deficiency. Deficiencies of any of these two proteins predispose to venous thrombosis but have been only rarely associated with arterial thrombosis.In this study we describe a case of severe cerebral arterial thrombosis in a 44-year old woman with protein S deficiency. The defect was characterized by moderately reduced levels of total and markedly reduced levels of free protein S. C4b-bp level was normal. Protein C, AT III and routine coagulation tests were within the normal limits.In her family two other members showed the same defect. All the affected members had venous thrombotic manifestations, two of them at a relatively young age. No other risk factors for thrombotic episodes were present in the family members. The patient reported was treated with ASA and dipyridamole and so far there were no relapses.


1996 ◽  
Vol 75 (06) ◽  
pp. 870-876 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Manuel Soria ◽  
Lutz-Peter Berg ◽  
Jordi Fontcuberta ◽  
Vijay V Kakkar ◽  
Xavier Estivill ◽  
...  

SummaryNonsense mutations, deletions and splice site mutations are a common cause of type I protein C deficiency. Either directly or indirectly by altering the reading frame, these' lesions generate or may generate premature stop codons and could therefore be expected to result in premature termination of translation. In this study, the possibility that such mutations could instead exert their pathological effects at an earlier stage in the expression pathway, through “allelic exclusion” at the RNA level, was investigated. Protein C (PROC) mRNA was analysed in seven Spanish type I protein C deficient patients heterozygous for two nonsense mutations, a 7bp deletion, a 2bp insertion and three splice site mutations. Ectopic RNA transcripts from patient and control lymphocytes were analysed by RT-PCR and direct sequencing of amplified PROC cDNA fragments. The nonsense mutations and the deletion were absent from the cDNAs indicating that only mRNA derived from the normal allele had been expressed. Similarly for the splice site mutations, only normal PROC cDNAs were obtained. In one case, exclusion of the mutated allele could be confirmed by polymorphism analysis. In contrast to these six mutations, the 2 bp insertion was not associated with loss of mRNA from the mutated allele. In this case, cDNA analysis revealed the absence of 19 bases from the PROC mRNA consistent with the generation and utilization of a cryptic splice site 3’ to the site of mutation, which would result in a frameshift and a premature stop codon. It is concluded that allelic exclusion is a common causative mechanism in those cases of type I protein C deficiency which result from mutations that introduce premature stop codons


1994 ◽  
Vol 72 (01) ◽  
pp. 065-069 ◽  
Author(s):  
J M Soria ◽  
D Brito ◽  
J Barceló ◽  
J Fontcuberta ◽  
L Botero ◽  
...  

SummarySingle strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis of exon 7 of the protein C gene has identified a novel splice site missense mutation (184, Q → H), in a newborn child with purpura fulminans and undetectable protein C levels. The mutation, seen in the homozygous state in the child and in the heterozygous state in her mother, was characterized and found to be a G to C nucleotide substitution at the -1 position of the donor splice site of intron 7 of the protein C gene, which changes histidine 184 for glutamine (184, Q → H). According to analysis of the normal and mutated sequences, this mutation should also abolish the function of the donor splice site of intron 7 of the protein C gene. Since such a mutation is compatible with the absence of gene product in plasma and since DNA sequencing of all protein C gene exons in this patient did not reveal any other mutation, we postulate that mutation 184, Q → H results in the absence of protein C gene product in plasma, which could be the cause of the severe phenotype observed in this patient.


1984 ◽  
Vol 52 (01) ◽  
pp. 053-056 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Estellés ◽  
I Garcia-Plaza ◽  
A Dasí ◽  
J Aznar ◽  
M Duart ◽  
...  

SummaryA relapsing clinical syndrome of skin lesions and disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) that showed remission with the infusion of fresh frozen plasma is described in a newborn infant with homozygous deficiency of protein C antigen.This patient presented since birth a recurrent clinical picture of DIC and ecchymotic skin lesions that resembled typical ecchymosis except for the fact that they showed immediate improvement with the administration of fresh frozen plasma. Using an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay method, the determination of protein C antigen levels in the patient, without ingestion of coumarin drugs, showed very low values (<1%).No other deficiencies in the vitamin-K-dependent factors or in anti thrombin III, antiplasmin, and plasminogen were found. Seven relatives of the infant had heterozygous deficiency in protein C antigen (values between 40-55%), without clinical history of venous thrombosis. The pedigree analysis of this family suggests an autosomal recessive pattern of inheritance for the clinical phenotype, although an autosomal dominant pattern has been postulated until now in other reported families.We conclude that our patient has a homozygous deficiency in protein C and this homozygous state may be compatible with survival beyond the neonatal period.


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