Which of the following is not an anticoagulant a)Histamineb)Hirudinc)H...
Anticoagulants are substances that prevent blood from clotting. Histamine is not an anticoagulant. Here's why:
Explanation:
Histamine is a chemical compound that is released by immune cells in response to an injury or an allergen. It is involved in the inflammatory response and causes blood vessels to dilate and become more permeable. This allows white blood cells to move from the bloodstream into the tissues and fight off infections.
Although histamine can affect blood clotting in several ways, it is not considered an anticoagulant because it does not directly inhibit the coagulation cascade. In fact, histamine can promote platelet aggregation (clumping) and increase the risk of thrombosis (blood clots) in some cases.
On the other hand, the other options in the question are all anticoagulants:
- Hirudin is a protein found in the saliva of leeches that inhibits thrombin, a key enzyme in the coagulation cascade.
- Heparin is a glycosaminoglycan (a type of polysaccharide) that enhances the activity of antithrombin III, another enzyme that inhibits thrombin and other coagulation factors.
- Citrate is a salt that chelates (binds) calcium ions, which are necessary for the formation of fibrin, the protein network that forms blood clots.
In conclusion, histamine is not an anticoagulant because it does not directly inhibit blood clotting.
Which of the following is not an anticoagulant a)Histamineb)Hirudinc)H...
Citrate is essentially a regional extracorporeal anticoagulant, with a short systemic half-life of around 5 min, metabolized predominantly by mitochondria in the liver, skeletal muscle and the kidney. Hirudin is the anticoagulant component of the saliva of medicinal leech and inhibits thrombin by formation of irreversible complexes through binding of its active site.
Basophils contain anticoagulant heparin, which prevents blood from clotting too quickly. They also contain the vasodilator histamine, which promotes blood flow to tissues.