thromboplastin

[ throm-buh-plas-tin ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

Biochemistry. a lipoprotein in the blood that converts prothrombin to thrombin.
Pharmacology. a commercial form of this substance, obtained from the brains of cattle, used chiefly as a local hemostatic and as a laboratory reagent in blood prothrombin tests.

thromboplastin

/ ˌθ��ɒ��əʊˈ��æ��ɪ�� /

noun

any of a group of substances that are liberated from damaged blood platelets and other tissues and convert prothrombin to thrombin Also calledthrombokinase

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Word History and Origins

Origin of thromboplastin¹

First recorded in 1910–15; thrombo- + -plast + -in ²

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Activated clotting or activated partial thromboplastin time assays are currently used to calculate heparin doses, but these are time-consuming, expensive and can be unreliable.

From

Head trauma can cause blood clots, Narayan said, because the injury triggers the production of thromboplastin, a blood protein that causes the blood to clot.

From

thromboplastic thrombopoietin

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