title: A novel selective inhibitor to thrombin-induced platelet aggregation purified from the leech Whitmania pigra.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The dried whole body of the leech Whitmania pigra, a well-known traditional Chinese medicine, has been widely used to treat thrombus diseases for thousands of years. However, its bioactive constituents were reported rarely. The aim of our study was to investigate antithrombotic components of it.
  
  
  METHODS
  The antithrombotic peptide was purified using a combination of anion-exchange chromatography, ultrafiltration and reverse-phase HPLC. the sequence of the peptide was determined using MALDI-TOF-MS-MS. Anti-platelet aggregation activity in vitro was evaluated using a turbidimetric method, and antithrombotic effect in vivo was assessed in an arterio-venous shunt thrombosis model in rats.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A novel antithrombotic peptide named WP-30, with the sequence VISRTQSNVQAAWGQVGGHAADYSAVAIER, was isolated from the dried whole body of the leech W. pigra. WP-30 selectively inhibited thrombin-induced anti-platelet aggregation in vitro, and potently attenuated thrombus formation in rats in vivo.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Taken together, we found a novel peptide from leech bodies, and this peptide showed antiplatelet aggregation and antithrombotic effects.
authors.affiliation: School of Life Science & Technology, China Pharmaceutical University, 24 Tong Jia Street, Nanjing 210009, PR China.
authors.forename: Xuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: School of Life Science & Technology, China Pharmaceutical University, 24 Tong Jia Street, Nanjing 210009, PR China.
authors.forename: Caihui
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: School of Life Science & Technology, China Pharmaceutical University, 24 Tong Jia Street, Nanjing 210009, PR China.
authors.forename: Xue
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ding
authors.affiliation: School of Life Science & Technology, China Pharmaceutical University, 24 Tong Jia Street, Nanjing 210009, PR China.
authors.forename: Xiaodong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: School of Life Science & Technology, China Pharmaceutical University, 24 Tong Jia Street, Nanjing 210009, PR China.
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: School of Life Science & Technology, China Pharmaceutical University, 24 Tong Jia Street, Nanjing 210009, PR China; State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, PR China. Electronic address: yikong668@163.com.
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kong
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D005343:Fibrinolytic Agents / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D007865:Leeches / Q000737:chemistry*; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010974:Platelet Aggregation / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D019032:Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization; D013927:Thrombosis / Q000188:drug therapy*
chemical_list: D005343:Fibrinolytic Agents; D010455:Peptides; C000610719:WP-30 peptide, Whitmania pigra
keywords: Antithrombosis; Peptide; Platelet aggregation; Purification; The leech Whitmania pigra