[Plasminogen activator and PAI. Detection in aqueous humor of the human eye]

Tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA), a serine protease that catalyzes the conversion from plasminogen to plasmin, plays an important role in the fibrinolytic system and has also in recent years attracted attention in the field of ophthalmology. In order to examine the role of t-PA in the physiology of the anterior segment, we detected t-PA in aqueous humor by using immunoassays. The samples were taken by keratocentesis prior to cataract or glaucoma surgery. The sample volumes ranged from 50-200 microliters. The quantities of t-PA Ag and plasminogen-activator inhibitor (PAI) Ag were determined by using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. We determined t-PA and PAI in the aqueous humor of 54 patients between 32 and 87 years of age. The t-PA Ag levels ranged from 0.2 to 1.9 ng/ml (average 0.8 ng/ml), PAI-Ag from 0.2 to 1.7 ng/ml (average 0.9 ng/ml). The values measured in men were slightly higher than those measured in women. No association between t-PA and PAI levels and accompanying diseases or metabolic disorders was noted. Precise knowledge about the presence of t-PA in aqueous humor is a prerequisite for the recognition of pathological events following intraocular fibrin formation and may be an important basis for the therapeutic use of rt-PA in the intraocular inflammatory process.