Reduced Activity of Protein S in Plasma: A Risk Factor for Venous Thromboembolism in the Japanese Population

The quantitative assay of protein S can help in rapidly identifying carriers of abnormal protein S molecules through a simple procedure (by determining the total protein S mass, total protein S activity, and protein S-specific activity in blood), without genetic testing. To clarify the relationship between venous thromboembolism (VTE) and protein S-specific activity, and its role in the diagnosis of thrombosis in Japanese persons, the protein S-specific activity was measured and compared between patients with thrombosis and healthy individuals. The protein S-specific activity of each participant was calculated from the ratio of total protein S activity to total protein S antigen level. Plasma samples were collected from 133 healthy individuals, 57 patients with venous thrombosis, 118 patients with arterial thrombosis, and 185 non-thrombotic patients. The protein S-specific activity of one-third of the patients with VTE was below the line of Y = 0.85X (−2 S.D.). Most protein S activities in the plasma of non-thrombotic patients were near the Y = X line, as observed in healthy individuals. In conclusion, it was clearly shown that monitoring protein S activity and protein S-specific activity in blood is useful for predicting the onset and preventing venous thrombosis in at least the Japanese population.