Effects of Anticoagulants on Serum and Plasma* Ivy

Information concerning the interaction of anticoagulants with plasma proteins is limited. Chargaff et al. (1) reported that heparin combined with a protein contained in the albumin fraction of plasma, and that the presence of this protein was necessary for the anticoagulant action. It was also concluded that the interaction of heparin and a labile fraction of &globulin was responsible for the elimination of the /3 anomaly of the electrophoretic pattern. The relatively high heparin concentration (0.4 per cent) used by these workers is greater than necessary to prevent clotting. The influence of smaller concentrations of heparin on the electrophoretic pattern of serum or plasma has not been studied. The present investigation was designed to fill this gap as well as to obtain information on the effects of other anticoagulants on plasma proteins.