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  • Between Bedside and Bench
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Far from the Heart: Counteracting coagulation

Nature Medicine volume 16, pages 759–760 (2010)Cite this article

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Basic research on the mechanisms of blood coagulation and the inflammatory response during tissue damage has revealed new potential targets for antithrombotic drugs. In 'Bench to Bedside', Charles T. Esmon examines three such studies, which offer the possibility of developing badly needed drugs that could block thrombosis without increasing the risk of hemorrhage. Esmon also raises the possibility that the new research could help explain why distal injury may contribute to protection of organs such as the heart, a process called 'remote conditioning'. In 'Bedside to Bench', Christian Weber takes a closer look at a clinical trial of remote ischemic conditioning, involving intermittent periods of occlusion and reperfusion on the arm. He examines evidence that cross-talk between cytokine and opioid receptors may underlie the effectiveness of this technique in protecting the heart from damage.

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Figure 1: A baby with a bacterial infection (meningococcemia) and uncontrolled inflammation and coagulation.

Katie Vicari

Figure 2: When plasma comes in contact with polyphosphates, RNA or certain foreign surfaces, factor XII is activated.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Departments of Pathology and Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Charles T. Esmon is in the Cardiovascular Biology Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA.,

    Charles T Esmon

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  1. Charles T Esmon
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Correspondence to Charles T Esmon.

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Competing interests

C.T.E. has a patent application on blocking histones as a therapeutic. He serves as a consultant for companies that develop antithrombotics.

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Esmon, C. Far from the Heart: Counteracting coagulation. Nat Med 16, 759–760 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/nm0710-759

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