Nature of the Factor Concerned in Loss of Blood Coagulability of Bile Fistula Rats

Abstract

In previous papers, 1 a marked increase in the coagulation time of the blood of the bile fistula rat was demonstrated. Analogous observations on dogs have been reported by Hawkins and Whipple. 2 The condition became evident when the animals had been maintained on a vitamin E free, low fat diet (See previous paper) or on the stock diet,† which was also low in fat, for a period of 30 to 50 days. The condition was not shown by unoperated rats when they were maintained on either of these diets. Small scratches or clipping of the tail in these bile fistula rats resulted in prolonged bleeding. At times this led to the death of the animal unless the bleeding was stopped by the application of collodion.

The content of prothrombin in the blood of the bile fistula rats decreased with time. The decrease after the prothrombin level had fallen to a certain point was roughly parallel to the hemorrhagic tendency. The method of Quick 3 was employed to estimate the prothrombin. Blood and brain tissues of normal rats were used to prepare the solutions. The normal serum as well as the serum which was treated with aluminum hydroxide were obtained from the pooled blood of a group of 8 to 10 normal rats. One-half cc. of blood was obtained by heart puncture from the bile fistula rats at intervals of 10 to 14 days. The prothrombin content of these animals was reduced to 20 to 30% of the normal before the coagulation time of the blood was markedly increased. Histological sections made from livers of some of the bile fistula rats when the blood coagulation time was markedly increased showed no evidence of liver damage.