Inactivation of thrombin in heparin-PVA coated tubes

Heparin, immobilized to polyvinyl alcohol by reaction with glutaraldehyde (heparin-PVA), retained its ability to accelerate the antithrombin III inactivation of thrombin, in a recirculating flow loop using heparin-PVA coated polyethylene tubes. The extent of inactivation, for a constant flow time, was approximately constant over ten cycles of exposure to thrombin and antithrombin III, suggesting that the immobilized heparin was reusable, as expected from the catalytic nature of non-immobilized heparin. Assessment of the chromogenic substrate activity of adsorbed thrombin and the extent of displacement were less conclusive with the implication that thrombin is adsorbed to heparin-PVA or PVA without heparin in multiple states.