New trends in the field of coagulation diagnosis--new possibilities to improve monitoring of antithrombotic therapy.

Two specific and sensitive enzyme immunoassays have been developed for the measurement of TAT and PTF, respectively. The TAT-ELISA uses two different antibodies binding selectively to the corresponding antigen moieties of TAT; anti-PTF antibodies were obtained from rabbits using a synthetic peptide from the COOH-terminus of PTF. Concentration in plasma samples of healthy individuals was found to be 1.45 +/- 0.4 micrograms/l for TAT, and 0.65 +/- 0.2 nMol/l for PTF. Patients with coagulation disorders showed markedly increased concentrations of both TAT and PTF. It can be assumed that these parameters might be suitable indicators for monitoring of both anticoagulant and thrombolytic therapy.