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Monash leads the way in blood clotting discovery

27 May 2009

A Monash-led research team has discovered a mechanism that promotes blood clot formation – a major breakthrough that will impact on the treatment and prevention of heart disease and stroke.

The discovery, which found a new link between disturbed blood flow and blood clotting, is the result of decade-long research led by Professor Shaun Jackson, Dr Warwick Nesbitt and Erik Westein from the Australian Centre for Blood Diseases (ACBD).

ACBD research director Professor Jackson said the association between disturbed blood flow and blood clotting was identified more than 150 years ago, however, the way blood flow activated the clotting mechanism had yet to be identified.

"Our arteries change as we age, leading to disturbances in blood flow. Our work identifies the precise mechanism by which these blood flow changes activate the clotting process, thereby increasing the risk of heart attack and stroke," Professor Jackson said.

Lead author Dr Nesbitt said the new clotting mechanism wasn't sensitive to anti-clotting drugs.

"This discovery may partly explain the ineffectiveness of commonly used anti-clotting therapies such as aspirin, clopidogrel or warfarin," Dr Nesbitt said.

Blood clotting diseases affect more than 50 per cent of the adult population and kill one Australian nearly every ten minutes. The impact of anti-clotting therapies on mortality rates remains low, with less than one in six avoiding a fatal event.

Co-lead author Mr Westein said the situation was likely to worsen due to the growing incidence of obesity and diabetes.

"People with diabetes are typically more resistant to the benefits of anti-clotting therapy, thus there is a pressing need for the development of more effective approaches," Mr Westein said.

The team worked with scientists from Monash University's Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Division of Biological Engineering, and the School of Electronics and Computer Engineering at RMIT Melbourne.